Henosis
by Traxamania
Summary: As a Child of Athena Samson hoped he could live a happy and peaceful life at Camp Half Blood following a tragedy when he was young. Unfortunately being the only child from Athena to possess psychic powers ruins any attempt at peace as being her favorite sets him off on a journey craft legendary items at her behest that will cost him and Athena everything they care about!
1. Chapter 1

It's a lovely day at Camp Half-blood, birds are chirping, children are getting seriously maimed and injured and I'm stuck in a gross attic! Seriously, it smells like someone died in here! Well, not _died_ but there was a dead body in here. Wish they lit scented candles or something. I'm not sure how the old Oracle could handle the stench! Well, she was dead so olfactory things probably weren't being used.

"Gods, this place is trashed" I muse to myself looking over the piles of boxes, trophies and other memorabilia from adventurers that only Chiron would probably care to remember.

"Fuckin Mr. D!" I mean geez! I don't know why it's always me that has to do this crap! Percy go get some lightning! Percy save a tree! Heck, save the universe and fisticuffs the planet while you're at it! Now the darn God has given me the worst quest yet, clean the nasty attic.

' _Get rid of the stench up there Peter Lerman! There's some things I want and Mrs. Overdose's body stunk the place up. I refuse to taint my heavenly nose up there!'_ Conceited A-holes of a god aside it took a solid hour of dusting and three cans of air fresheners to make the scent bearable. I don't know why he called the old Oracle Mrs. Overdose though, maybe that's how she died? Geez kind of embarrassing.

Throwing the last can in a corner I make my way towards the door. As I'm turning I smack my foot into a something on the floor and dear Gods it must be made from sturdy stuff because holy crap it hurts! Giving myself a second to recover my totally unwounded pride and wipe the tear from my eye I look down at the little bastard-I mean inanimate object that has no feelings and see that my toe foe is actually a pretty sweet little foot chest.

Whipping some of the dust off I reveal that It's labelled ' **Athena Cabin 1969** '. Huh, pretty cool. Taking the chest in my arms I carry it with me down the stairs and outside as I make my way towards the Athena Cabin, I have a feeling a certain girlfriend of mine would like some help snooping through some probable dead people's belongings! I'm the best boyfriend!

* * *

'I swear I have the worst boyfriend.'Annabeth Chase concluded after listening to her ' _genius_ ' of a boyfriend's idea of snooping through a box of other people's belongings. At least, snooping without asking Chiron if it's okay to steal a box from the attic! Geez it's like he's asking for trouble. Well, he basically does but I know that if he just asks someone before he acts the world would be a much happier place.

My moral conclusions didn't stop me from helping Percy dig through the chest's contents though. We both got our own small piles, there was actually some pretty neat stuff in here. Some fancy watches, a few daggers, some old notebooks, an old pair of circle frame sunglasses and what looks to be a nice leather-bound textbook. 'There's the prize.' I think to myself, maybe the writer has some interesting things written down in here.

"Hey Percy!" I call to my boyfriend, "Come check this out with me!"  
I don't get a response, I look over and see him nose deep in some old magazine. He notices me looking after a few moments with a blush on his cheeks. Curious.

"What's that you have?" It's an ask for most, for me It means ' **give it** '.  
"Umm," comes his eloquent response "nothing?". That's unsure, he has something he shouldn't. I give him ' _The Look_ ' and he quickly hands it over looking at his feet bashfully.

I read the title of the magazine, " **Hottest Bods, Olympus Summer edition 1963** ". Oh Percy, you stupid teenage boy. I flip through a couple pages, then I flip through some more. Wow. Demeter, that is NOT tasteful. I keep going through some more. Damn Hormones!

"Oh, **Ares** …" Holy crap he must be desperate with THAT as his photo shoot! I flip the page to the next set of photos.

"Mother!?".

* * *

After hiding the 'magazine' under my bed in the Athena cabin, I'm keeping it away from Percy shut up! I meet him outside my cabin again. Oh, Gods he looks like a puppy that knows it's in trouble, are his eyes watering? Shit. Um okay be encouraging, you're not mad!

"Let's go talk to Chiron." Nailed it.

I get a despondent 'okay' in return. Our trip back to the Big House was fun enough. Percy was practically radiating guilt behind me and I saw an 11-year-old with an arrow in his arm. Good for him. Unfortunately, we had to go with them since we're 'responsible adults' whatever those are.

Ugh, this kid won't stop crying either, he keeps mumbling something about 'mother' and 'the worst summer camp ever'. Pfft, what a baby. Most kids here are psychologically traumatized and can't cry anymore.

Anyways we finally meet Chiron at the big house after waiting a couple minutes for him to deal with a dying- I mean crying child.

"Annabeth, Percy." He greets us, "How can I help you?" Before I open my mouth, we hear a loud girlish scream from inside the Big House followed by joyous laughter. We all wince at that, Mr. D must've been the one to pull the arrow.

I clear my throat, "Chiron, Percy and myself found a chest in the attic, it was labelled for the Athena Cabin in 1969. I was wondering if you could tell us a bit about them? I've never heard anything about the previous generations of our cabins".

"Ah yes." he states, then looks out across the camp with a small smile. He looks almost, endearing. Like he's remembering the good old 'days. Well, he did for a second before his smile turned into a grimace. Uh oh. " **That group**."

"What would you like to know about **them**?" The enunciation of the word 'them' makes me just a little nervous.

"Well, um, could you tell me a bit about them? I've never talked with any significantly older camper so I'm curious about what they were like?" His frown gets deeper, this may not be going in a good direction.

"I'll be right back, child." He turns around back inside. Percy and I share a look. We both agree, _this is a little awkward_. We wait a few minutes before we hear clopping followed by a large series of thumps and crashes. We wait a little longer and Chiron opens the door. Geez he looks pretty fricking beat up. His face is bruised and he has a pretty nasty cut on his forehead. He limps forward a little bit and hands me a book.

"Here, this is for you. Your predecessor wished for it to be passed down to the Head-Councilors of your Cabin."

I take it a little hesitantly, "Shouldn't I have gotten this a while ago?".

"Probably yes, I most likely repressed the memory." He turns around and limps back inside. Huh, now I'm really curious. I open the book and flip through some of the pages.

"What is it?" Percy asks, looking over my shoulder at the book in my hands.

"It's a journal." I tell him. He motions to the steps and we sit down together. I flip to the first page and start reading aloud.

* * *

Man, let me tell you, being born is really weird. Now, usually you don't start forming memories you can remember into adulthood until you are significantly older than a couple minutes. I must've been a weird child since I had access to a full usable language at birth and general knowledge of things in life.

My mind was well mature beyond my body, no one seemed to notice however. I was very quiet when I was cleaned and passed over to something warm. I had no need to cry. When I tried saying hello to who must be my mom all I managed to get out was "hrajfascfnspcf.".

I think my father thought I was born retarded since his first words to me were, "This boy is fucking retarded!".

Ah so I am a boy, cool. Dear old dad, I love you even though you sound like an awful stereotype of a Shogun warrior which was funny since he was Japanese.

"What will his name be?" That must be my mother seeing as she was the one cradling me against herself and is the only other person in the room. I tried to look at her face, unfortunately with my underdeveloped eyes I couldn't make out anything solid features.

"Samson Akira. That will be his name."

Mother is quiet for a moment, "… Very well. I'm busy so it shall be." She passes me to my father and leaves I guess? I'm not sure what she did since there was a bright flashing light and I never heard any footsteps besides my fathers.

"Retarded one," he speaks to me, "I am Katsuhiro Akira. I am your father." I nod at him in respect, he nods back. I like him.

The date of my birth was June 5th 1947 and it was the day my father felt the happiest in his life. He would never dare to say out loud it though, but we both knew it was true. It's just a father-son thing. It's also the last time my father saw my mother again.

* * *

Mother was never around for my younger years. Whenever I asked my father about her all I got was, "I don't fucking know." A real charmer my father was. She was a subject my father never liked to speak about. I did learn when I was five that her name was Athena and apparently, she's a goddess. Huh, strange fact for a five-year-old to learn but hey, knowing is knowing. That's all he would talk to me about her though, we both knew she was a sore subject.

I did seem to take after father as we both had deep black hair and pale skin. Even as a boy it was easy to tell we were father and son. I've seen some old pictures of father when he was my age. The resemblance was uncanny. The real difference between us was in our eyes however. Where father dark eyes that almost seemed black mine were a startling light grey. They almost looked like they were glowing, even in the dark. My bright eyes and dark hair often startled our neighbors when they look directly into my eyes.

As I grew in the years I learned a bit more about father. For one he was an avid gardener. He must've liked it quite a bit since most of his free time was spent outside growing all kinds of pretty flowers. I'm not really sure what my father did for money since I never saw him leaving the house except to take me to stores around our small town in Virginia. He also had a pretty wicked collection of artifacts that I guessed to be from his home country; there were many kinds of swords and a sweet set of armor that we really couldn't figure out were to place.

He was also a very direct man and apparently hated other Japanese people. I know this since when I asked him why he never taught me about his homeland or language all he told me was, "I hate the Japanese, you will be a good American and be better."

I never argued and obeyed since father was never wrong and very smart. Father knew best.

* * *

My few years of school was never the best time for me unfortunately. I did wonderful in terms of the academics. Heck, I was actually bumped up several years since I never scored wrong on any test sheet or work assignment. It was easy for me since I never actually forgot anything I learned. I've heard my teachers mention words like 'prodigy' and 'genius' when talking with my father about me. I guess it was a compliment since many mentioned me being 'useful to the Big Man' when I grew up.

I never did like my peers though, when I was around my teachers I could feel their anger and disgust when they met with my grey eyes. I hated it. Thankfully I could also feel their jealousy. That feeling pleased me however.

Eventually my father decided I should be taught by himself personally. I guess my black-eyes received to given ratio had him worried since I never fought back against my tormentors. Violence was never something I enjoyed especially since I could feel the pain of others around me. I later learned this was an ability called empathy in my science fiction novels I was fond of reading.

Father did purchase a cat to act as a companion for me in my youth. He said it was to be my friend since he refused to be mine. I never told him how much it hurt that he had said that but I understood his reasons, my powers allowed me to realize that so I got over it quickly.

I did 'experiment' a little on Ailuro, he was the cat, with my powers when I was around seven years-old. I read many science-fiction novels and often time characters had the ability to move things with their minds or other such abilities. Being a small child, I wanted to see if I had the same capabilities. As it turns out I did. After months of practice I decided to show my father my abilities by levitate the cat with my blankets over it to scare him. With my dastardly plan set in place I put it into motion the following morning when he was distracted making breakfast. Waiting for my father to have his back turned at the kitchen counter I quickly levitated my makeshift ghost behind father and called for him.

He turned around and went wide eyed at the flailing blanket, the cat hated being levitated. Father was silent for a few moments before screaming,

" **くだらないゴースト!** " in a language I did not know and roundhouse kicked my cat and the blanket into the wall. He has a pretty good kick since the cat hit the wall hard enough to crack the wood. Good times. Unfortunately, my cat died on impact.

After having me swear not to use my powers in public he took me to a fancy diner as a way of saying sorry for killing my best friend. I asked for another pet instead but he just said "Remember the cat.". I decided a diner was a better choice.

* * *

The diner we went to was very nice, especially since the only person there was some lady in an oversized jacket wearing sunglasses trying not to look suspicious.

Father and I were instantly suspicious.

She never did anything though which I was happy about. Usually people got angry at father when we went into public and tried to hurt him. Thankfully father knew tons of fancy ways of moving to counter his attackers. When I asked my father about it he said that it was,

"Wing Chun, the only good thing to come from China."

I didn't know who China was but they sound like my father's worst enemy so I shall hate them as well.

After we ordered our food from the nice waitress I was silent as we waited. I wanted to ask father a few questions about my mother but I was very nervous so I stayed silent. Father must've known what I wished to say since he broke the silence between us.

"Speak, little retard. You may ask." It was an order, between us no question was to be unasked and unanswered.

"Father," my voice was quiet "what was mother to you? Why was I born?"

He was silent for a moment, looking in his dark eyes I knew he was thinking of the right words to say. Which ones would be correct and wise.

His response was quick and sure "She was a quick fuck and you were an accident.". Ah, dear old dad. All love and no tact. The lady in the booth behind us coughed quite loudly before having a nasty fit. I think she choked on the cola she was drinking.

We both looked at her as she was coughing but made no attempts to help. She was very red faced and shaking with what I guessed was anger. I couldn't actually feel her emotions; her presence was very empty and that was disconcerting. She got up and hurriedly left the restaurant, the teenage waitress following suit shouting about her bill.

* * *

Over the next following months, I found joy walking through the forest behind our house. The forest was quiet and calming since I couldn't feel the hate of other people, no one but myself ever went there. As I was leaving through our side yard I noticed father sitting in the middle of his garden like some kind of sentry. I've seen him do this many times before but this time was different since he was donned in his antique Samurai armor looking out into the tree line. Now father is a bizarre man but his armor has never left its place in our home as a fancy coat-rack so something special must be happening.

"Father?" I ask as I approach him. He motions for me to sit next to him. As I do he points towards the trees he's looking at. "There, my son. In the branches tell me, what do you see?" I look towards the tree branches but I don't see anything.

"Look deeper. Focus with your mind." As I train my eyes back to the tree branches I notice strange shapes through the shadows. "Owls." I say as I realize what they are. There must be hundreds of them covering every branch along most of the trees. Their eyes are unblinking and focused on my father. This does not feel right.

"Yes, they are Owls and they are RUINING MY FUCKING GARDEN!" he screams loudly at the owls. A couple of the Owls flutter in surprise and I jump as I've never heard father raise his voice so loudly or with such anger.

I'm a little shaky as I rise to my feet. As I do father hands me something long wrapped in a fancy length of fabric. "For you son, it is a gift left to you from your mother." I clutch it tightly to my chest. I can feel tears threatening my eyes, something bad will happen. Father knows this, I can feel his emotions.

"Continue your walk son, return when the sun has fallen and the moon is high." I nod once and walk towards a patch of trees where there are no owls. My heart is beating fast and fear is consuming my emotions. When I reach the place where fathers garden meets the trees I turn around one last time. His dark eyes filled with determination meet my scared grey eyes. Even though no words passed our lips we had an understanding not many can find even with words.

 _I love you_ was the meaning we found in one another's eyes. I turn and continue my trip into the forest, disappearing into the shadows as my father draws his sword at his hip.

I am unsure for how long I walked, the forest felt hollow and so did my heart. I knew what had happened at home but I will obey what father wished. I was to return when the moon was high in the sky. As I looked up I could see that cursed orb in the sky through a clearing in the branches. It was time.

As I made my way back home and into father's garden I knew that my feelings were correct. I sat down next to my father's corpse as I wept openly and loudly, holding onto his form shaking him just a little. His throat must've been torn open by the horrible talons of those horrible birds! My only peace was the knowledge that father fought proudly and fiercely. His now ruined garden is filled with the mangled remains of dozens of the wretched owls. I smile to myself through my sadness. Good, they deserved horror of my father's fury!

I lie over my father's body for a long while, I just can't let go. Father knew best, I know nothing. Even a genius seven-year-old is only seven! I'm so scared, the world is awful and the people that populate it are even worse. I just don't know what I should do! I'm lost now, and my fear keeps me here.

Eventually I feel a presence approach be from behind, it is quiet and steady. It must be a stealth attack! Some stranger has come to take me from my home, from father! I remain still, pretending to sleep. The stranger puts a hand on my shoulder and that's when I use the training father taught me! If some stranger touches you, scream loudly to confuse them and attack! They are vulnerable in their panic!

As his hand touches me I spin around screaming "SEXUAL ATTACKER" and punch in the area of what I assume to be their crotch. I've heard from some of the wives of our neighbors that it is a great weakness in humans. Unfortunately, my foe is quick and dodges my attack. I give them no time to recollect as I unsheathe the sword hidden in the wrappings father had given me and charge the brigand with my sword raised above my head proudly screaming like an angry housewife!

My foe cries in surprise in a high girlish pitch. They must be a lady! I give chase as the hairy lady scrambles on top of fathers gardening shed. Damn my tiny legs, I can't climb that high! I hear the villain scream about 'helping me' and 'not a monster'. I don't listen and decide to chop the roof around their feet. My foe cries.

Good, fear me I am the hunter!

After a few minutes of chopping and hysterical crying from my enemy I start to slow down. My body is tired and my mind is exhausted. When my arms fall to my sides the hairy lady speaks to me from their safety perch.

"Please little boy," Okay so they are actually a man. "I'm here to help you! I can take you somewhere safe, a new home." They speak the truth, I can feel their emotions.

They drop from the shed and gently pry the sword from my limp grip. They aren't human now that I focus on them. They possess the legs of a goat in place of a normal man legs. Two nubs that I assume to be small horns sprout from the curly hair on either side of their head.

The kind stranger takes me onto their back and carries me out of father's garden and away from my only home. The weight of all that's happened finally crashes onto my shoulders as the adrenaline wears of and my sadness takes root in my heart. I am unsure where we are going but now I don't care. He promised me a new home and that's where I want to be now. I close my eyes and cry softly. Father is dead and I am not. I try and find solace in this. Unfortunately, I cannot. Thankfully sleep arrives and the darkness it brings give me slight comfort.


	2. Chapter 2

Henosis: Chapter 2

* * *

 **A/N: Yup forgot to do this in Chapter one but anyways welcome to Henosis! This Story is rated M as future chapters will contain mentions and usage of drugs as well as suicide. If these topics bother you don't read this and if you struggle with these sort of things then please seek out help!**

 **Anyways Like, comment, subscribe (is this YouTube?) and enjoy the story. I'll probably upload this once or twice a week so keep your beady little eyeballs on the lookout!**

* * *

 _Summer 1963, With Samson_

Man, growing up sure was weird at my new home. Well, I'm not really grown yet since I'm only 13 at the current moment. Anyways as I found out, my mother actually is Athena. I mean, I've been aware of this for a while but It's nice knowing for sure.

It was kind of strange as apparently the camp director knows that she is my mother since she 'claimed' me by having a giant owl image appear over me after I arrived at this magic camp called Camp Half-blood; and from what I've learned about this place during my introduction by a funny looking centaur It's been around for a pretty good while. It is apparently a haven/ training grounds for Greek demigods of which I now know I am. I still don't like owls though.

As I spend more time here, I learned that there's a decent number of other demigods from all sorts of gods and goddesses around as well. It is unfortunate for them since most are smushed into only one of the cabins, number eleven if I remember and then die horrible deaths later. Too bad they don't have a number to call to complain to about the housing and murder. They'd probably be disintegrated by a god if they did though, god's are kind of evil like that sometimes.  
Thankfully I don't have to worry about anything like overcrowding as being an Olympians' child means that we have cabins just for us. Only the Olympians have cabins though, the rest are fucked.

Currently I have four younger brothers by only a year and a few months. It is a little peculiar as they all share the same birth-date. From what they told me, they were the result of Athena taking godly migraine pills and accidentally pushing off their births. Apparently she forgot about her coupling with their fathers and just kicked them out of her head at the same time when she remembered they existed.  
They're a bit upset about that since they were gestating around eight months when between all of them, and 'regular' Athena kids are born in a couple months on average.

I suppose the overcooking of my brothers is why they're quite varied and a bit, off mentally for the most part.  
They're devilishly smart, don't get me wrong, but each is a little quirky and kind of idiotic while being a prodigy in their own right.

Steven, my second youngest brother, is sort of brutish in a way. He's bigger than the rest of us and definitely stronger, but is the most careful and controlled. He takes after mother in the way that he enjoys weaving and sewing. He makes a decent sum of money selling clothing to the camp store, but never charges near enough for his items. He's humble in that way. I've heard some of his works have changed enough hands that a few have ended up on Olympus in the hands of minor gods and even an Olympian or two. Everyone loves him around camp which is good since our band of idiots have a reputation for being psychos and not well appreciated.

Robert, the second oldest of my younger brothers, is the business mind of our little Cabin Six family. He's a bit scrawny and not too tall, but is a genius when it comes to the popular market. He's actually been working closely with the Demeter kids to grow this funny little plant called 'Marijuana'. I don't like how it smells but he tells me that it'll be a huge hit in the coming decades. He likes to chastise the Demeter kids about 'never getting high on their own supply' when he catches them slaking off and smoking the cigarettes they make out of the funny plants. I don't know what a high is, but it sounds kind of groovy.

Thomas, the oldest of my brothers, is just a straight up psychopath. He's skinny, almost unhealthily so, but is ridiculously strong; nearly as strong as Steven. He has a habit of breaking bones of others a lot. Even the Ares jocks keep a wide birth around him. I'm convinced he's a Dhampir, no one can be that skinny and pale while also being so strong.  
Apparently, he was inside mothers head for around eight months, almost three times longer than what is 'healthy', which makes a great deal of sense to me since he's fucking crazy. He talks to himself most of the time and I am almost certain his eyes are dilated 24/7. He's the painter of our family and probably the best in the camp. It's not the largest of problems except for the fact that his painting are really gruesome and disturbing. They most who see them nightmares, even me a few times. I'm almost certain he uses real blood in his paintings, maybe that's why there's not many rabbits and squirrels in camp? I love him regardless.

William is pretty average when compared to the rest of us. He was easy baked the shortest out of my brain siblings. He likes pottery and jewelry the most between us and is an excellent handicrafts-man. The pieces he crafts out of the scrap metals from the Hephaestus are some of the most beautiful and renowned in the demigod world. He works closely with the Aphrodite cabin and has even made some pieces for Aphrodite herself. His sanity is stable for the most part except for when he gets negative feedback on his work. When that happens he tends to lock himself in our closet for a day or so and refuses to come out. I chiseled a small hole at the base so we can slide him food, wouldn't want our dear brother getting hungry now.

I myself enjoy smithing, quite a lot actually. Metalworking and gadgetry has been one of my favorite hobbies at camp aside from learning about science and philosophy. I get quite a few jokes from other campers about how I fit more as a Hephaestus child than an Athena one. I never understood these jokes that much, I enjoy learning all kinds of things instead of what my parent is known for. I felt the same way about other campers too, they all limit themselves by just following the status quo of their heritage.

I suppose being vocal about my thoughts is why I'm not the most popular or respected camper. It's not my fault the Aphrodite cabin hates be because I said they all looked the same, they asked me what I thought and I answered truthfully. Or that the Hephaestus kids hate me because I can forge just as well as they can. Man, being surrounded by kids sucks. Then there's the Ares campers whom fit better into a film than real life, each of them could play a convincing bully in movies if they bothered to learn about anything beside combat. What a bunch of dicks.

* * *

I remember the first time we all met our mother Athena, it was kind of unpleasant.  
We were all asleep early in the morning when this terrible aura passed through our cabin. It felt as though an ancient demon from the deepest pits of Tartarus crashes through our door and tried to rip our very souls apart.

Instead of a demon though it was our displeased mother telling us that our cabin is filthy, and we needed to clean it. So, I suppose a demon from hell was an accurate comparison.

After we tidied our cabin mother calmed down a fair margin and asked us to gather outside. Being the Head-Councilor of our cabin, I was the one in charge of my little brothers, so I was the one who would ask the questions my brothers were desperate to know.

"Mother," I asked, interrupting her mid-rant about the architecture of our cabin. "Not to be rude- "

"As you are being now." She cuts me off with a sharp voice and a dangerous narrowing of her gaze. Gods she is frightening, but a notorious Athena rant can take several weeks to end and we have a schedule to keep.

She gives me a disappointed look and ouch, that hurts. Like, it really hurts. Her grey eyes are intense, and I can tell she is evaluating every aspect of my being almost as if her eyes can see into every aspect of my soul. There's a glint in her eyes though, she looks at me like how one appraises a valuable jewel, scrubbing it for flaws to see it's true worth. I take slight comfort in the knowledge that I am worthy of being evaluated like this by her, it makes my heart burns just a bit warmer.

"- my brothers and myself are just slightly curious as to the nature of your visit. We have it on good knowledge that it is forbidden for Godly parents to have interactions with their children." I stand at attention before her, head high and hands behind my back as though she were a general and my brothers and myself are lieutenants.

She stands tall above us, at least a few heads. She is dressed in a nice suit and practically radiates her authority over us. We all stand side by side, me in the middle, waiting like well-trained dogs. We're quiet and still, we've never met her before but we all know the stories. Her temper and fury are legendary to those whom have passed along the stories.

I can tell she appreciates our attempts at being cordial and decides to humor us with a small smile. "At ease, children. I am here because father is otherwise occupied with a large series of civil disobedience amongst the Olympian council."

Her smile warms my heart whilst also giving myself a sense of dread. I can't feel her emotions like I can with everyone else, it's as if her body is a void in the sea of emotion that is humankind. My greatest nervousness, however, comes from her piercing gaze. She has a plan and it's something special, something big. Her eyes can't lie to me. She notices my stare and her eyes soften and become neutral, damn she figured me out.

"Rest easy, it will not affect demigods significantly." She attempts reassurance, the pit in my stomach only grows larger instead. I can tell my brothers feel the same.

"The only change will be godly parents having some more, _liberties_ , in their children's lives." Huh, that's a curious statement. I've heard that Zeus keeps his rule strict and unwavering. For him not to have total control is, frightening. Gods going rogue for lack of a better word is dangerous.

My brothers and myself couldn't mull over our thoughts for very long. Mother quickly explained that her reason for visiting us was evaluate our work. She wished to know what we all were working towards and how we were doing it. Simple and innocent enough I suppose. Her eyes still left me nervous although. There was just something about them. It felt like she was rummaging through an old pile of rubbish to find something valuable. I still for a second.

'What if that's why she is here? To find out which of us is the most useful. To find which child has the most value.'  
My thoughts become selfish. I don't want to lose! I can't, I love Mother and I want her to love me in return. That feeling, being valued. I crave it, I crave Mother's pride in me, so I can't let her down! I will win, even against my brothers. I can feel their emotions rolling over me, they share the same selfish feelings as I do. I am thankful that they don't know about my empathy ability and can't feel my emotions as I do theirs.

For a long time, I've been drawing blueprints to a special device. I've spent many years working on its design and function. It'll be a true masterpiece if I can build it. Maybe the blueprints could be enough? Maybe she will be impressed, after all it's not a concept but a nearly complete schematic. I take my documents and notes from my chest and stand behind my brothers in the line she had us form. Save the best for last, right?

After about forty minutes or so of my brothers presenting their best works it's finally my turn. She raises an eyebrow when I hand her a bunch of loose papers in place of a beautiful piece of art like my brothers. I keep my face stony and calm, but my eyes betray my facade. Lying with my eyes is not something I have mastered yet.

She mulls over my designs for a long while. I can feel my brother's eyes on the back of my head and their emotion are even more clear to me. I feel their curiosity and, jealousy? I've never felt them like this before, perhaps I shouldn't have used this as my offering. I can't let them win, though. It must be me, I need too!

As the minutes pass mothers face stays passive. Her eyes remain neutral besides an odd glint here and there. Eventually the papers shuffle back to the start of the pile and she hands them back to me. Her eyes seem hungry now, like they were wolves and I am their prey.

"Take my hand, Samson." It's an order. She extends a hand out to me, so I take it. I won't disobey mother or upset her. I like not being a spider monster thank you very much! She wraps her hand gently around mine and we disappear in a flash of brilliant light. That light, there was something curious about it. It felt old and wise, like it knew something greater than I could comprehend. Curious, very curious.

When the light fades and I can see again I find myself in the most wonderful hall I have ever seen! The walls are brilliant and beautifully decorated and engraved, the statues placed around that are so beautiful and lifelike that one would think they are people painted white. There's a peculiar aura in the air, like this temple that must be mother's home is alive and watching me in curiosity.

I turn to face mother and see that she has changed her outfit. She's wearing a beautiful white chiton and has a Corinthian helmet balanced curiously on top of her head. I briefly wonder if it ever falls off if she moves her head too fast or gets clipped on the top of doorways.

She faces me and begins to speak, she didn't get very far though as the ground shook with a powerful tremor and a screech of rage rang through the halls from somewhere far away. Mother whips her head in the direction it came from, her helmet flying off her head and narrowly missing me as it clanks to the ground behind me some distance away.

She is majestic and stoic when she turns back to face me, maybe just a bit more than before, and clears her throat before continuing,

"Samson, tell me please, what is the name of this device you wish to create. What would it be used for?" I'm excited now, I've never spoken with anyone about this before. I always kept it secret.

"It is called the Mana Pool, Lady Athena." I keep my voice respectful, I don't want to come off the wrong way like a psycho! I can't ruin this moment!

"It would theoretically allow a person to perform great feats magic by acting as a source of power." Her eyes widen, and she pulls her lips into a small smile. My heart pumps fast and a warmth spreads through me. I feel happy now, loved. She asks me more about my device. Why would I create? How does it work? I tell her about my gadgetry, and how if I could enchant devices with magic than I could create wonderful items with amazing uses for demigods on their quests. Maybe if they were better equipped fewer would have to die. She asks me to continue and so I tell her about how most demigods perform rituals to generate the mana to power their spells and how I theorized that Hecate children don't need rituals or specific enchanted items because they can generate mana naturally and store it inside their bodies somehow

"Please, Samson. Call me Mother. Now tell me, how would this device generate it's magic then," she inquires of me with a proud smile. She knows me so well already.

"The magic children of Hecate use come from their relation to her. She is their source after all." I smile at this. It took me a while to figure out a reliable source of energy, but I am a clever lad. Reading through my collection of astronomy and physics textbooks I learned of a form of energy that my device could use and convert into mana. Radiation.

"My device isn't just a pool of energy, mother. It is also an energy converter. It would take radiation, Non-Ionizing and Ionizing radiation, and convert it into mana; and since radiation is everywhere and near infinite the device would never have difficulties charging or any worries about places that it couldn't be charged at."

Mother's proud smile becomes even greater and my heart feels like it's going to burst. I'm so happy. She still has a glint to her eye, but I ignore it. I won't let anything ruin this moment for me! Parental love has been missing from my life for a long time now, maybe I'm being greedy but right now I don't care. Mother loves me and that's all that matters. She puts a hand on my shoulder and leads me out of her temple.

Olympus is the most beautiful thing I have seen, even if half of it is smoking while the other half is rioting. Huh, strange place, this must be what she meant when she said grandfather is busy. Mother takes my hand and walks with me a little quicker towards whatever destination she has in mind. Thankfully we are higher up from the violence and what I guess to be the Olympus Police are keeping the rioters from traveling further up the mountain. Being so high up I can see many beautiful temples, structures and mansions around. Olympus is a amazing city by itself with what I assume to be the Olympian's temples high above the rest.

Mother is navigating us through beautifully carved walkways, we pass by several other wondrous temples and amazing statues. I gratefully soak in the beauty of Olympus and make note to thank mother later for letting us walk to wherever we are going instead of just teleporting us there.

Eventually she stops us in front of a giant statue of a pretty lady and pulls me so that we are hiding out of view behind it. A magnificent temple lies further back behind the statue we're hiding at, I guess this to be Hephaestus's temple as gorgeous metal monuments litter the courtyard, several are of whom I guess to be Aphrodite and one very _unflattering_ one of whom I guess to be Ares, the metal statue is kind of fat and the face looks like it has been beaten up by something blunt. A hammer maybe? I give Mother a questioning look but she ignores me while looking at the entrance to the temple.

"Samson, I have a slight, _favor_ to ask of you." The glint in her eyes is back. "Inside this temple is a specific book, I want you to go inside, grab it and bring it back out to me." I'm very nervous now, maybe even scared. But mother has asked me, so this must be very important. She explains to me a bit more about the book and how to get to it and navigate the temple. The most important thing she stressed to me was DON'T GET CAUGHT. Apparently, I'd die.

After sneaking into the temple like a professional ninja, I only fell like a couple of times, I hide behind a wall and peek around the corner. As I had been sneaking through the temple I could hear loud yelling and arguing. Looking past the corner I see that the ones arguing are two people completely opposite beauty-wise of one another. 'Aphrodite and Hephaestus' I muse in my thoughts. No way that they aren't. I wait behind the wall for a minute and listen to their argument, I'm sort of curious. That and Aphrodite is nice to look at, I don't really know why.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU!" she yells at Hephaestus, her voice is shrill like a banshee and her face is red in fury while he looks completely unbothered, his gruff voice is cool and tempered.

"I really don't get why you care at all." Her anger shakes the whole temple in response. Must be what caused the tremor earlier.

"YOU BUILT A SEX ROBOT!" Ah that's why she's angry. I don't know what a sex is but the robot sounds really cool, much more than an angry pretty lady.

"So? S.A.M. loves me! Unlike you!" Oh that's harsh, wish I had snacks.

"YOU NAMED IT? I AM YOUR WIFE!"

"The last time you touched me was 40 years ago! It wasn't even that good!"

"ARE YOU SAYING I'M NOT GOOD ENOUGH!"

"Lady, you gave me a shitty hand job! Hades, you stopped half way through when Ares broke my fucking door in and asked for one!" What's a handy?

"I did?" She pauses and looks to the side trying to remember the memory. Then she snaps her fingers with a half-surprised look on her face. "Oh Yeah! I did" She giggles a little in fondness at the memory.

We all hear a clanking in another room out of view and a crappy electronic voice calls out from wherever it is. " _DADDY, WHERE HAVE YOU GONE DADDY?"_ Hephaestus looks a little flabbergasted, Aphrodite is furious and red again.

"I swear I didn't program it to say that." She only screams gibberish and starts smacking him. Huh, she's kind of pretty when she's angry.

"Damn, she's HOT when she's angry." I jump a mile in the air, figuratively, and turn around behind me where the voice came from. I look up and see a large man, almost certainly Ares. Damn, the statue outside looks exactly like him, the sculptor did an excellent job.  
He didn't seem to notice me at first, but then he looks down and surprisingly jumps a little. He looks a little shook before he gains an angry scowl on his face. He's actually kind of pretty when he's angry too.

"The hell are you doing here, kid?" Yup, definitely Ares. His kids talk the exact same way.

"I'm stealing Hephaestus's stuff." I respond, I hope this works.

"Oh." His scowl lessens slightly before he grins. "Carry on then." Excellent, mother would be proud.

After navigating the temple for a short while, Aphrodite and Hephaestus still arguing in the distance while S.A.M. keeps making weird statements between them, I arrive at what appears to be some kind of library that was hit by a hurricane. Books are thrown everywhere and random bits of metal is scattered as well. After digging through a few piles of books I find the one mother described me. It looks like a large leather-bound textbook with a poorly written in title that says, 'How to forg'. It looks like the writer wrote too large and ran out of space for the last letter.

As I move to get up from the pile of book a colorful image crosses the corner of my eye. I dig it out and reveal a summer magazine of some kind, the title reads " **Hottest Bods, Olympus Summer edition 1963** ". Looks weird, guess I'll take it too while I'm here.

After making my way back outside of Hephaestus's temple I meet back up with Mother at the statue where she quickly teleports us back to her own temple. I hand her the textbook which she takes greedily from my hands and flips through the pages at blinding speed. She has a slight manic grin before becoming stoic again and hands the book back to me. Holy shit she can read fast!

"Thank you, Samson. You have done myself a great service. As thanks I give you back this book." She gives me a smile. "That book is Hephaestus's guide on crafting mystical items. It is my gift to you, happy birthday, my dear son." Oh right, I forgot it was my birthday. I wonder if I still have time to celebrate with my brothers?

I eye the book in my hands, the possibilities with this are endless! Maybe though, I think back to that light that flashed when mother took me here. What was it, there was a power behind it, raw and precise, but there was more. Some kind of feeling of, understanding? It fascinates me, I must know more!

"Mother?" I ask, almost inaudible. She looks at me, I can see the curiosity on her face. "When you first teleported us here, what was that light I felt?" A look of knowing crosses her face.

"That was my true form Samson, something you must never look upon, it will kill you if you do." Her voice is grave and warning. I can't look at the true form of a god as I am now but maybe with this book I can? Perhaps all I need is something, _mystic_ that will let me without destroying me.

Mother is watching me closely as I begin to ponder, her eyes shine with, something, in them. I can see a plan forming after her moment of realization.

"Samson, I have a quest for you." A quest? This is, AMAZING! Another chance to make mother proud. "I can see into your thoughts here, I know what you seek. I want you to speak with the oracle at your camp, she will set you upon the right path. I can and will help you through this, do you understand?" She takes a knee to be at my height and places both hands on my shoulders.

"Do this for me, Samson, but keep it secret. This will only be between us, understood?" I nod vigorously, this will be amazing! What can someone learn when they see the true form of a god? What understanding can they achieve by doing so?

"I accept, mother! I will create these items for you!" I'm almost trembling in excitement, maybe even a little madness? Nah, everything will be fine.

"You have made me very proud Samson, from this point on I name you The Mystic. Carry my title well for me, my son, my champion." She pulls me into a hug which I reciprocate without hesitance.

"I love you." I haven't heard these kinds of words in almost forever now. I won't fail her, I can do this! Besides, I've nothing to worry about with mother guiding me!

Everything will be fine in the end.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N**

 **Hey, here's another chapter. Hope you guys enjoy!**

* * *

 _With Samson, fall 1965_

The Oracle is dead and it's kind of my fault. Okay, so maybe not entirely but everyone still agrees I'm at least partially responsible.

So, our Oracle, a middle-aged woman from Nebraska, has always been a lady of the times. By that I mean she's a bit of an addict. Robert makes a pretty good profit off of her as she is his biggest client in the camp.

Chiron doesn't like that half of the camp is basically running a giant drug operation for a good portion of the east coast, he's even more mad since we have Mr. D's permission. Funny enough Mr. D helps coordinate with Robert, split profits sort of thing. I have no idea what a God needs with money, but he's probably doing it for fun. Corrupting the youth and what not.

Anyways though, Marilyn, our Oracle, has always been the closest thing to a camp psychologist. Any personal issues? She's the one you go to. She like donations though, it makes everything easier if you give her some cash before a session.

It was just an hour or so before dinner when the 'Oracle Incident' happened. My brothers, myself and Marilyn were huddled around her little bonfire she likes to hang out at. She was ranting at us about the good old days when she could sit on her ass and watch TV while her late husband worked forty hours of the week.

"I miss the bastard," she's tearing up a little. "he would pay the bills and all I had to do was clean a little and get him so drunk he passed out until next morning. Maybe the odd shag here of there, but God I miss the good times."

She was the one who gave me 'the talk' among many other horrifying insights about things in life. I was glad she spent as much as she did with me since her husband died during the Korean war and the war in Vietnam is raging strong currently. Looks like Ares and Eris are busy since the whole region out there is as Marilyn says 'fucked'. I guess she's the closest thing I have to a normal parent in this crazy world I live in.

"Hey, kid." She asks me, "It's fine if I drink this, right?" She holds up a bottle of Schaefer's Beer. I'm not sure why she's asking me since she's almost fifty and I'm fourteen. I tell her I see no problem with it and she chugs the whole thing back in around five seconds. Yeah, she's also an alcoholic.

Everything is fine for a few minutes, we're all enjoying some roasted marshmallows and the evening air when Marilyn starts acting a little odd. Now being the 'innocent' youth that we are we thought she was giving a prophecy. Her eyes glowed green for a second before rolling up into her head and she falls backwards off her bench.

As we learned from rummaging around her little she was a heroin addict, and being drunk whilst high on heroin is a recipe for death. Which is what she now is. She has also turned into a mummy kind of thing. It was very, _disturbing_ to watch a human body suddenly turn into a raisin. I almost threw up when I saw it happen, Chiron did.

We weren't really sure what to do since the spirit of the Oracle never left her body. Chiron wanted to keep it in the infirmary and see if one of Apollo's or Hecate's kids could rejuvenate or move the spirit somewhere else. Mr. D just threw her in the attic, he said he didn't want her stinking up his house. I don't blame him, corpses smell awful.

Apollo himself arrived not too long after she was tossed upstairs and told us to just leave her there. He said it's fine for now, and that we should get a new one either in a couple months or decades. I'm leaning towards the decades part since Apollo was very high when he arrived and wasn't really aware of what was happening.

Robert was happy with the whole ordeal since he got Apollo as a new client for his business. At least someone was happy at the end of the day.

A couple of months passed after that and I'm still busy working on the designs for mother. The textbook I stole-I mean acquired from Hephaestus has helped immensely with my projects. My original design for the Mana Pool was around the size of a car battery, but with all that I've learned from the book I managed to shrink it down and stylize it into an amulet.

The devices, I'm not sure of a good name yet, that I am creating are going to be divided into three separate functioning devices. The first one actually lets you see the true form of a god, the next translates the essence into something a human can perceive and finally the last one that should protect the user from any sort of mystical harm that occurs when viewing divinity.

This work is very important to me and to mother, but my brothers are having doubts about everything.

"Samson, this isn't healthy!" Steven is chastising me after finding out about my sleep schedule, or the lack of it at this point.

"I am perfectly fine brother." I tell him, hoping he'll back off and let me continue with my project. "I am well aware of my little sleep but I am comfortable with it, I can manage." He isn't convinced.

"Please," He pleads, "I know you feel like you have to do this for our mother, but she is working you half to death!" I can feel doubt slipping off of him. What or who is he doubting?

"I know I can't force you into anything Samson. It's like my father used to say, you can help someone, but first they need to help themselves." He looks to the floor, like he's trying to gather the courage to meet my eyes.

"Samson," His eyes meet mine with power and determination. "how did your father die."

I don't like to relive that memory, it hurts too much to remember. Stevens eyes are piercing and strong, just like mother's. Eventually I give in. I love my brother too much to deny him.

"He was killed by owls." My voice is quiet, almost wavering. I don't want to think about it. My heart would shatter if I did. I don't want it to be true.

"Just, just think about these things for me okay?" His eyes are strong, but his voice is pleading, this hurts both of us. He guides us into hug, holding me as my mind fills with doubt and fear. Why was father killed? By whom? And most recently, what does mother gain from my creations? The answers to these questions frighten me because I don't know, and deep down inside I don't want to.

More time passes, more planning with mother and coordinating with my brothers and finally the time has come. It is now the fall of 1965 and the first of three quests for mother has begun. My brothers know about the nature of my work, much to mother's disappointment, and they know how much this work means me. I can't lie to them about my work, they're family; they deserve to know.

These quests aren't official in any sense as the Oracle is busy being dead, so we never got any prophecies. These quests are the result of planning from mother and myself, so no prophecy and no Oracles, just business. It's as refreshing as it is scary to not know about what could could happen.

Our goal for the quest was a simple, travel to West Quoddy, break into an old lighthouse and steal Prometheus's liver before the giant eagle can. Simple enough except that we must travel by land and it's over 500 miles from where we are now.

According to mother being as careful as we are now isn't the most necessary precaution to take, but grandfather is just a little paranoid as the rioting and disobedience on Olympus is still raging strong. She wants us to take the safer route to our goal and avoid potentially drawing Zeus's attention.

Since most official quests are only by groups of three I decide to take Steven and William with me. Robert is very busy with his operation at Camp Half-Blood and Thomas would be a hassle to control for this quest.

Getting permission to leave the camp was a simple affair, mother left a message to Chiron telling him of our absence from camp for 'special Athena duties'. He wasn't very happy with Athena interfering with Camp Half-Blood life, but he wisely kept his thoughts to himself. Mr. D couldn't care less about our duties, he only likes Robert.

The first part of our trip was peaceful as far as demigods are concerned. I got a few nasty remarks and glares from people on the bus we were taking. Unfortunately, it only ran so far and we were forced to find an alternative route.

After 'acquiring' a car from a particularly nasty man in Massachusetts, I don't feel bad those were hurtful remarks, we were driving down a mostly empty road near the border of New Hampshire at dusk, the sun quickly falling below the horizon. Thankfully I learned how to drive from the older Hephaestus kids so I handled the car crash fairly well. The thing was definitely totaled though, but that wasn't what worried me. Something rammed the car from the side, something big and strong.

Crawling from the car my brothers and myself quickly found our foe, the biggest Hellhound I have ever seen! This thing was huge and its ferocious jaws promised death to anything it got in its mouth. It was almost as big as elephant!

Taking it down was fairly easy, the beast charged me but I twirled out of the way, slashing at its legs as it charged past with the xiphos father gifted me all those years ago. The monster didn't seem very smart since it repeated the same tactic at us several more times, taking more hits to its legs from my brothers weapons and my own until it collapsed as the bones broke under the stress of our slashes and its own body weight.

The beast wined pitifully as I plunge my sword into its neck, finally put the elephant sized dog down as its body dissipated into gold particles that were quickly blown away by the evening wind.

We're only a little winded as our adrenaline rush dies down finally. We all share a look between before we all start laughing. Gods the thrill! That was so much fun, I've never felt so close with my brothers before. There's nothing quite like combat and survival to bring people together.

I make a mental note to take Robert and Thomas with me on the next quest, I want this bonding with all my brothers. Thankfully the duffel bags full of our supplies remained intact from the crash earlier. We were preparing to continue on foot when the tree line to our right exploded with activity, several dozen more Hellhounds charged from the brush and barreled straight for us.

Steven quickly pulled a Greek fire grenade from his belt and hurled it towards the pack. The grenade blew up into a beautiful shower of green fire that washed over most of the pack. The beasts shrieked in pain, many dying as the fire quickly spread and consumed their bodies at an unnatural rate. Unfortunately, some of the pack were far enough to the sides that they were unaffected by the blaze.

We all try and run back into the forest around us, hoping that the trees would limit the remaining packs maneuverability. Steven and William make it to the tree line fine but I was cut off by another hound, the beast snarls and begins chasing me in the opposite direction. Out of the pack of twenty hounds only five survived, one I know is chasing the other four likely went for my brothers.

I know they'll be fine, the hounds after them were likely the runts of the pack, they were much too small. No, I'm worried about the one chasing me, this one is smart most likely the alpha or another higher member.

I swerve through the trees with the beast still hot on my trail, I'm glad that It's sheer size keeps ramming into trees. I hope that the blunt force from smashing into so many trees would weaken and disorient it. I stop in front of a large toppled over tree, the pointed end facing my back and wait for the monster to come into view.

I don't wait long as I see it crashing through the forest brush, snapping its jaws in anticipation as it charges me head on. I roll out of the way last second as it crashes into the pointed log behind me, its chest being pierced as the speed it gathered forced it all the way through the beast and out its back. It struggles for a moment before going limp and disappearing in a puff of dust.

I take a moment to breathe before I start sprinting back the way I came, following the destruction and toppled trees back to the road.

As I approach the road I start hearing loud groaning and the twang of a bow loosing arrows. None of my brothers carry a bow so whomever this is must be a local hunter or some other mortal. I quickly speed up, I can't let whomever they are die!

I break through the bushes back onto the road and see a large, over twelve foot tall club wielding man smack a small form down the road. I'm almost certain the man is a Laistrygonian giant, the small girl as I get a better look, I'm not so sure. She feels like a normal human but there's something else unnatural about her.

The giant raises its club to smash the girl into mush, she's unmoving likely unconscious from the blow she took. Without a ranged weapon I quickly to use my telekinetic powers to grab the club with my mind as it raises it above its head.

The giant is confused when it brings its hands down only to find them empty. It looks around in confusion before looking up above its head. That's when I drop the club back down, the heavy end smashing into its head as one of the nails set into the club pierces the giants eye.

I tumble backwards holding my head in pain, gods that was difficult! Ripping the club from the brutes strong arms took a lot from me, keeping anything heavy in the air like that always gave me a headache but this creature was so strong I almost passed out!

As my sight clears up I see the giant trip over its feet and fall back hitting its head on the concrete. The creature is clearly dazed blinking blindly to itself. Now is my chance!

I quickly run over to the creature and stab it in its jugular. The beast roars loudly, its roar turning into a nasty gurgle as blood spills from its throat. I grimace as I stab it again a few more times until it stops flailing and lies flat before turning into a shower gold dust.

I wipe the sweat from my forehead and try and ignore the blood staining my clothes. As I turn around I feel a bursting pain erupt from the side of my head, and I fall to the ground.

Fuck it hurts so much! I cradle my head in my hands and try and focus my vision but I just can't. The stress from using my powers and being bludgeoned in the head is too much and dark unconsciousness quickly overtakes me.

I must have been unconscious for several hours as when I wake again the darkness of the night replaced the light of the sun. I blink a few times and my vision clears again, my headache slowly disappearing until I can form cohesive thoughts again.

I don't fail to note that I am in the center of a camp of some kind, tents stretched through the forest. The only inhabitants I see are young girls, each giving me a glare that would kill a rhino. I also note that I am expertly bound to a tree with robe.

Ah shit, I know who these are.

As I take in my surroundings a young girl, likely 12 or 13 approaches me as many of the girls gather closer to my tree. The young lass has startling silver eyes that promise me a painful death and wonderful auburn hair that almost looks like it was painted by a Renaissance artist.

Overall, she's a little cutie, what with her chubby cheeks and adorable little glare. I must have said this out loud as she swiftly knees me in the crotch at an incredible speed. Totally worth it. I'm glad I could never really feel physical pain for long since that move would've been awful if I could feel it for very long.

She moves back and keeps glaring at me for a few moments. I suppose it is only polite to introduce myself to a goddess, so I give her the best bow I can while tied up.

"Hello, Lady Artemis, to what pleasure do I owe this _hospitality_?" She kicks me again, I guess I shouldn't be a smartass, but I am a little peeved at this treatment.

Her glare is back in full force, but when she speaks she maintains a surprising calm and clarity to her voice.

"Boy, you have assaulted one of my hunters. I have brought you here, so you may explain your actions to me." Now that is interesting, the girl I saved from the giant must be a hunter. If she is, then why was I attacked by her after the giant? Was it confusion, or is she lying?

I clear my throat, "My Lady, there must be some confusion here."

"Oh, is there now?" She tilts her head to the side, her glare turning into a neutral stare. Ah, she can also read someone's eyes.

I tell her of my journey so far, of the Hellhound pack and the stray giant I encountered while searching for my brothers. She looks away for some odd time, likely processing her side and my side of the story. Eventually she waves off her hunters and they disappear, some to their tents and some to the forest.

"The giant you encountered, he is one of the breeders from a clan that passes through these parts every so often. When we scouted the area, we found no traces of your brothers. They are likely alive but lost somewhere in this forest." I breathe a quiet sigh in relief.

"My Lady, if you may, I would like to be released. I have been separated from my brothers for far too long." Her eyes snap to mine, she gives me a very 'Athena' like sharp gaze. It's not as good as mother's, so I'm unaffected.

"For now, you shall remain here boy." Uh oh. "I am still investigating this incident. By tomorrow I will return. I will decide your fate then."

Well, now I'm worried. Artemis leaves somewhere, likely to join her hunters, and I'm left tied to a tree with only my thoughts for company.

As time passes, at least an hour by my guess, a lone familiar hunter approaches my tree. I recognize her from earlier, she's the one I saved. As she comes closer I can make out her features better. She's likely 13, at least physically and almost certainly emotionally, and has light skin with bright brown braided hair and the angriest pair of brown eyes I've ever seen. She's sort of cute, like some of the little kids back at camp. I must've said it out loud again because she kicks me in the groin like Artemis did.

"I don't know why My Lady lets you live _boy_." Well now, this is interesting, a liar. "She should just let the wolves loose on you." She is giving me a smug expression, clearly enjoying the power she holds over me.

Unfortunately, her emotions can't lie to me. I can feel her anger, no fury. It's irrational and wild, my guess is she expresses her anger onto men because she would be kicked out of Artemis' hunt if she treated any of the hunters like this.

I can tell she is uncomfortable with me analyzing her quietly. This is good, I can use her emotions as leverage and prove my innocence to Artemis, she isn't too far way, I can tell from the voids Gods leave in the world.

She steps forward and slaps me hard across the face. Gods what is it with these people and head trauma!

"Keep your eyes to yourself boy!" Ah, she's asserting control, just a little bit more and I'll have her right where I want.

"Well, miss, I think first we should exchange names should we not? It is only polite after all." I keep my voice calm, playing this smart is my key out.

She wears a self-gratified smile. "Hmm, now that we are being cordial I am named Kara. What are you called _boy_?" I smile gently, "My name is Samson, it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

We make small talk for a short while, she occasionally hits me with something or gives some nasty remarks about what is going to happen to me tomorrow. I keep playing the part of the beaten boy, slowly working our conversation in the right direction.

"So, Kara," I ask her. "why is it that you are unhappy in the hunt?" Her smile drops from her face. " _What did you just say?_ " She grits out through her teeth, her face becoming furious.

"Well, I can feel your emotions; your anger and unhappiness in this Hunt. Why do you stay here if you are unhappy, is that why you have lied about my actions?" Step one.

She steps closer, drawing her knife from its holster. Her eyes are nearly manic as she pokes the blade into chest, step two.

"I may have lied, but no one will believe you. I _HATE_ your kind boy! Everything little thing about you is _disgusting_." She digs the knife into my skin and draws it slowly down my chest, cutting open my shirt. I can feel it sting as she glides it down my sternum. It takes all my willpower not to cry, feeling it crawl down my skin is an awful feeling, but I steer myself forward. I'm almost out of this.

"I'm sorry you feel this way, but why lie about what happened? Is it just to be cruel? Surely lying to your Lady is taboo." She slows the knifes crawl, I can see the doubt in her eyes. It doesn't end her manic emotions, she is conflicted. Step three.

"I _hate_ you, I hate you so much." She is beginning to tear up. "You are _evil_. This is the least I can do, after _everything_ that's happened I can't let you go free." Now she's choking up. "So, I lie. I lie so I can get my _vengeance_."

It's just as I thought, she transfers her anger onto men even when she knows she shouldn't, and it's destroying her on the inside. That just makes what I must do next even harder for me, step four.

"Lady Artemis," I call out behind Kara, "I believe I have proven my innocence now." Kara freezes, her face wide in fear. She spins around quickly, Artemis's face is stoic but I can see the disappointment in her gaze.

"My Lady, I- I'm-" She stutters out a few words but stops when Artemis meets her eyes. They share a look between each other for a few moments. Kara's fear is rolling of off her waves, I feel bad for tricking her, but my brothers are in danger if there's a giant clan in the area.

Eventually, Artemis snaps her fingers and Kara glows silver for a second before it fades and she falls to her knees, tears rolling down cheeks. Artemis then speaks, "Kara, you have been loyal to the Hunt so I let you keep your life, but from this moment forward you are no longer my Hunter. You have lied and tricked myself more than once by your own admittance; you will be returned to the mortal world, and you will never have contact with anything demigod or Olympus again."

She closes her eyes and inhales deeply, "Go, Kara, live your life and grow, I see now my mistake in taking you in to my hunt."

Kara is silent, her emotions feel empty, like a void. Then she's exploding into action quicker than I thought a mortal could ever achieve, her knife racing towards my heart as she cries in manic rage. Her emotions are so mixed I can barely tell the difference between her anger, sadness and fear. They're so muddled they almost feel the same.

Thankfully, Artemis didn't let me die as she most so fast, almost like she teleported, and quickly had her arms around Kara and pulled her away from me. Quickly two hunters came and took Kara by her arms, dragging her from my tree and disappearing out of view in to the forest. Kara was screaming in fury as she was dragged off, her tears passing in ugly sobs as she screams curses and promises of my death.

I feel awful for causing this but I can't fail my brothers now, they need me and I need them! I feel the ropes holding me fall as Artemis cut them with her dagger and I drop onto the forest floor. It takes a minute for me to feel my limbs again, whoever tied them did it so tight that the blood was cut off from most of my limbs.

As I stand again, my legs feeling like needles were coursing through my veins, Artemis looks at me with sadness in her eyes. I can tell Kara meant a lot to Artemis, and her 'betrayal' left her very upset.

We don't say anything to each other for a long time as we hold the others gaze. Eventually, she breaks the silence, I can feel the tension in the air as her eyes harden are her face becomes stoic again.

"Child of Athena," her voice is calm, but I tell she's trying to hold her emotions back. "we have _much_ to discuss."

I may be screwed regardless of me being right or not, she's barely holding back her fury and I'm not sure how long she can hold it until she cracks!


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hey all, welcome to the next chapter!**

 **Not sure how many have gotten it, but I've put some little easter-eggs in the last chapter to my friends, Thetruerhero's, story!**

 **Anyways hope you guys enjoy, it's a little shorter but hopefully you enjoy the imagery.**

* * *

We've been standing, face to face, for a short time now. Artemis is clearly upset by her former hunters' betrayal, I doubt she expected one of her Hunters to be capable of lying to her.

Dear gods my chest is killing me! Kara cut fairly deep which isn't the worst, there's not many vital blood vessels on a human chest. The issue is she made a long cut down my chest. Blood is seeping fairly quickly through my shirt and I'm starting to worry about blood loss. I hope Artemis has the heart to at least not let me bleed to death.

I must look like a crazy murderer by now, gods I hope we have extra clothes packed. I don't know if the mist will cover up a bloody shirt or not, it's a hit or a miss it seems.

She must've noticed my near delirious state, what with all the blood pooling off me, and snapped her fingers.

A block of ambrosia appears in my hands which I happily devoured. It tastes just like the chicken father used to cook in his wok back home.

I don't get to mull over my morose thoughts for long as Artemis clears her throat, bringing attention back to the matter at hand. I stand straighter and smooth my clothes as best as I can. I don't want to look _that awful_ in front of a goddess. Unfortunately, I smother blood on my hands, now I _really_ look like an axe murderer.

Artemis chooses to ignore my state of dress and raises a placating hand. "Be at peace, nephew, I will not harm you now. I merely wish to talk."

I breathe a sigh of release and my shoulders sag a little, dear gods that is a huge relief. I'd rather not be turned into an animal and hunted down like a beast.

I wonder why she refers to me as her nephew now? Maybe she's less harsh on Athena's children, from what mother has told me she and Artemis are close friends.

"What shall we be talking about, My Lady?" She tilts her head, looking at me with curiosity and familiarity. Perhaps I remind her of someone?

"Your brothers, you'll find them a mile west in that direction." She points off into the distance. "The giants have yet to find them, but they'll be upon them within a few hours. They'll be hunting after you now for destroying their hounds"

Phew, they're safe! I'm very worried now though, we're being hunted? How could they know? Perhaps they had a scout.

I am curious about something, though. "My Lady, not to be rude but why is this clan still around? I believe Hunters kill groups of monsters like this one."

She snorts and looks to the sky, "Ordinarily you would be right, but with the rioting in Olympus and fathers wavering control, my Hunters and myself have been ordered by my father to pacify the minor Gods that have been causing issues in the mortal world."

Huh, so Zeus is losing control. Normally I'd ask more questions, but my brothers will be worried about me. It was sundown when we were split and looking at the moons positions in the sky it's nearly midnight now.

Before I can ask Artemis for permission to leave, she looks back to me and asks, "Nephew, tell me about Kara. She was unnaturally distressed, and her promises of your suffering disturbed even me."

"Kara," I begin, "She is a… _disturbed_ girl. You can learn much about someone if you can feel their emotions, which I can."

I think back to when she was dragged away, she didn't seem human anymore. More like a rabid dog.

"My Lady, she needs help. _Very serious_ help. She should be placed into an asylum, there others would be safe and she might work past her issues."

Artemis crinkles her nose in distaste. "Asylums, they're too close to Dionysus for my comfort." She crouches down and picks something through the grass and hands it to me. It's the dagger Kara used to cut my chest.

"I can't help you much on whatever quest you have found yourself in, but I will give you this. You have done me a service and I won't let that go unrewarded, even if you are male."

I spin the small kopis dagger in my hands; it is a startling silver color with intricate designs grafted along the handle and the spine, it's at least eleven inches long and I can tell that it's razor sharp just looking at it.

It's truly a beautiful piece of work, the Hephaestus cabin will be jealous of this for sure.

"Thank you, My Lady. It is an honor to wield this." She snorts again. "No need to be a kiss up, I'd rather you have that blade than me. It is tainted with the evil actions of its previous master."

I snigger a little. She's pawning off bad memories on to me. Oh well, it's a fine weapon and I'll make good use of it.

"I hope this dagger will find good use in your care." I look back to her, her face is stoic but I can see the grimness in her eyes.

"The leader of the giants is a dangerous foe, use the gifts given to you by your mother and you might yet succeed."

I'm not sure what to say, her warning is foreboding and grim. One of her Hunters hands me back my supplies and a belt sheath for the dagger. I say my thanks to her and Artemis and pull the bag over my shoulders and place my sword into the sheath on my hip.

"I'll be on my way then." As I turn away and begin to leave the camp Artemis calls out to me again.

"Be warned, nephew, Kara is dangerous, even if she's only human." Her face darkens. "You have truly broken her, and she has never forgiven easily. She will come for you." I nod and continue into the forest.

I try and focus my mind back onto my quest, but it keeps coming back to Artemis's warning.  
 _'She will come for you.'_ I swear I'm too young to have a nemesis, and of course it has to be a demented loony!

* * *

After racing through the forest for a while I hear a sharp whistle and a loud crack! I look up in the sky and see bright technicolor particles vanishing in the air.

My brother's fireworks!

They must be desperate then, if I can see it than so can anything else!

I begin sprinting towards the area I saw it at. I can barely see through the forest; the overcast is covering the moons light keeping me racing blindly in the dark.

I stopped in a small clearing and listened to the sounds around me. I can only hear the leaves rustling, Steven and William are likely lying low somewhere nearby. Thankfully as children of Athena we can mimic owls very well, and I taught a code in owl hoots to my brothers in case we needed to communicate discretely.

I sing a small song in owl hoots and wait, if my brothers heard me they should be heading in my direction. After some time, I hear soft hooting coming from behind. Good, I recognize the pattern.

Soon enough I see my brothers emerge from the shadows. They look beaten up, their orange camp t-shirts are torn and their shorts have seen better days. They have some scratches on them and they're covered in dirt, but overall they don't look quite so bad for fending off a horde of demon dogs.

Steven and William rush over to me and pull us all into a massive group hug. My spine might break under Stevens amazing bear hug, thankfully he doesn't go that far. I do wonder if he can break bones, I've never seen the full extent of his strength.

We pull away but William does give me a good sucker punch in the arm.

"Where have you been man!" William sounds a little angry, thankfully his demeanor is full of relief and happiness. "You've been missing for hours!"

"Oh man, I've got a story to tell you guys." I quickly fill them in on my encounter with the hunters. They wince when I tell them about Kara and they get nervous when I tell them about the migrating giant clan that the hunters are ignoring on Zeus's orders, and how that they're after us as we speak.

I try and lighten up the mood when I show them the dagger Artemis pawned off onto me. They're clearly enamored with it. The beauty of weapon just can't be ignored by people, even if they aren't weapon smiths.

We can't faff around for long though, I tell them more about what Artemis told me about the giants, about how they were heading I towards us and to be extremely careful around their leader. I guess that we have an hour before the giants arrive at where we are now.

"What's the plan, Samson?" Steven is direct, his eyes are very serious. He knows we have danger heading our way.

I pull up our map, based on the moons position and the way Artemis pointed me towards we are likely in Green Mountain National Forest by now.

William points Manchester out on the map, "Here, this town has a safe-house for demigods. Our mother mentioned to me that a child of hers lives in the town and is known the help out demigods in the area."

I nod, perhaps they can set us up with transportation. What worries me the most is our distance to Manchester. There nearest town is still miles away and the roads are a double-edged sword. If we follow the road we might be picked up by passing car, but we'll be sitting ducks if the giants have a scout that can fly or they have something patrolling the roads.

We decide to stick with traveling through the forest. At the time that it is now there's most likely no one on the roads and if we stick to the forest our scents will be covered up by the nature. They don't bring it up, but the chances of a driver willing to pick up a blood soaked Asian are very low. I appreciate that it isn't mentioned.

* * *

We've been running through the forest for a short while now, thankfully as demigods we have significantly better endurance than normal mortals. I have no idea the distance we've traveled, but William keeps telling us that a town isn't too far from where we are now.

I'm very grateful that William has spent significant time in the great outdoors, his father used to take him hunting when he was younger and he's kept his skills sharp since then.

Eventually we have to stop. Even as demigods our stamina isn't unlimited and trying to push ourselves further without catching our breathes would start to become hazardous.

We're all bent over panting, our cabin isn't known for being among the healthiest and the fittest and we all certainly are examples of that.

"So, Samson." That's Steven, "What's the purpose of this quest? You said you needed special material, but as far as I know the east coast isn't very special besides New York."

He's very curious and just a bit angry. I'm not blaming him, Stevens always been the mama bear of our cabin and this quest is putting us in some serious danger.

William tries waving him off. "Lay off him, man. Mom gave us this quest for Samson. Besides, he'd do this for us too if we asked for help. The least we can do is be there for our brother!"

I smile to myself, I really appreciate Williams support. He's always been the brother you can confide to in our family.

Steven lets out a long sigh, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to come off so snappy. I guess, I guess I just want to know some more, you know? Mom's having you working on all these things and leaving so much in the dark."

I understand what he's saying. Mother's been having me keep secrets, even from my brothers. I know she'll be upset, but I can't leave them blind like this.

"We're stealing the liver of Prometheus from Aquila."

They're clearly surprised to learn this. It's no secret that Prometheus's punishment is never to be interrupted and the rumors of what happens to those that do are legends by themselves.

"How would we do this then? Zeus enforces his punishment severely and if Aquila see's us he'll tell on us!" William is nearly hysterical, we're getting into some serious Olympian business doing this.

I try and diffuse his mild panic with our greatest assets, logic and planning."We won't have to worry about Zeus watching, mother has told me that he's keeping his attention elsewhere with the rioting in Olympus, he's much more worried about rebellion than a lone imprisoned titan. As for Aquila, he'll never know. We reach the lighthouse at night, take his liver and be gone before morning."

"What about the man himself? I'm sure Prometheus would be against us harvesting his organs against his will." Steven has a good point, but I don't think much of it.

I just shrug my shoulders in response, "The birds been taking his liver for millennia now, I'm sure he won't be too upset if someone else does. Besides, I'll be using surgical tools. Hopefully he'll be happier if someone takes his liver in a less brutal way."

Steven just shakes his head, he's amused in a disturbed way.

* * *

We rest and catch our breath for a little longer until we heard a loud crack! It's coming from somewhere behind us but we can tell that it's a tree being felled by something.

We're back to sprinting not long after.

Shit, the giants caught up to us! How could they have? They don't have any hell hounds, maybe something else sniffed us out?

I can feel the ground rumbling under our feet, the giants are within shouting range now. Fuck, they're right behind us!

Steven and William are running on my flanks, Steven is tossing some of his Greek fire grenades behind him and William is dropping flash grenades too.

It's an effective combo, the giants are blinded by the flash and run straight into the consuming flames. Unfortunately, we're not the fastest things in the forest as a giant comes barreling at us from the side.

We dodge his attack and keep running.

"COME ON!" William is screaming at us, "BENNINGTON ISN'T FAR!".

That encourages us to push on harder. My heart is beating so hard in my chest it almost feels like it will break my ribs open. Sweats pouring down our faces as we pump our legs faster than we've ever before.

The charging giant is back, he's running parallel to us now as his longer legs lets him keep up with us.

He takes a few swings at us with a huge wicked looking club. William ducks under the swings and runs to his legs and slashes his sword right into the monster's tendon.

The beast cries in pain and collapses harshly, likely being trampled by the horde chasing us. Steven pops a few more grenades from his bag and the horde seems to lose distance on us.

As we keep running we see a strange glow appearing from the trees far ahead of us. As we get closer I feel a wave of heat rush over us.

The forest ahead was on fire! It's burning far and fierce in both directions, they must've cut us off somehow!

We start running parallel to the fire, we can't run through, so we're forced to the side. I'm worried by this, this level of planning is beyond the level of a regular Laistrygonian. Whomever is commanding them must be smarter than anticipated, this is almost certainly a trap!

We hear a loud, wretched neighing come from the fire beside us and seven forms rush through the flames. They're the biggest and most beautiful stallions I've ever seen! Fire shoots from their mouths like napalm and my admiration ends there.

We roll away from the pack as they try and barrel through us. One of the horse turned around, no doubt hoping to burn us to ashes, and quickly found my sword and new knife burrowing into its' neck.

It screeched awfully before turning to powder. The rest of the pack decided to surround us, their hoof steps causing fires to sprout as they create a circle around us.

It's already getting hard to breathe as the fire they created grows massive and sucks the oxygen away from us! The horses rush through the fires fine, it's clear that they're completely resistant.

This gives me an idea. "STEVEN!" I scream, my voices sounding strained as it fights to be heard over the inferno surrounding us. "USE YOUR ROPE! THEY CAN GET THROUGH THE FIRE!"

Steven's eyes widen, the rope I made him is almost indestructible and was enchanted to block the supernatural powers of anything it touches.

He yanks the rope from his pack and quickly ties it into a lasso, he's been obsessed with cowboys since he was young so obviously his younger self learned to lasso things; cats, dogs, his grown neighbor. Steven's had his practice.

He twirls the lasso above his head and chooses his mark. He throws the rope and catches the biggest horse through the inferno and starts pulling back with all his strength.

The mare whines and yowls as Steven pulls it towards himself. His strength is unbelievable! The horse tugs with all its' strength, it's even making grooves in the earth.

This means nothing to my brother as he grits his teeth harshly and rips the creature from the fire, causing it to fall forward onto its side.

Now's our chance! We rush forward and hop onto the stallions back as it rises to its feet again. Steven ties the rope around its face and in its mouth, creating a makeshift bridle.

I hear stomping and shouting outside the fire, the giants have finally caught up with us. Thankfully they aren't fire proof either as they keep their distance outside the circle of fire we're trapped in.

Steven looks back at us and winks, his grey eyes sparkling with joy only the happiest of children can possess.

"YEEEEHAAAWWWW!" He snaps his rope and we take off through the fire, knocking a few giants to their feet as they scatter from the flames that we pull through with us.

We take off through the forest and straight into the inferno that's encompassed most of the forest. Breathing is difficult but we manage, the adrenaline pumping through our bodies keeps alert and focused.

I hear screeching and warped neighing behind us and look back. The remaining six horses are charging us through the inferno, fire wrapping around them like steeds from hell.

Something is pushed roughly into my hands and I look down and see a mechanized looking crossbow in my grip.

"USE IT!" William screams at me and points at the charging mares. He hands me a bundle of bolts and swings his sword at one that tries to ram us from the side, catching it in the neck and slicing straight through.

I focus back to the horse racing at us from my side. I quickly load a bolt and fire it off, the projectile pierces straight into its eye!

It screams something awful and crashes into a toppled over tree. Four more to go. I load another bolt and aim for the next closest one. The beast is so close that its snorts causing searing hot air to race over my arms. I cry in pain but pull the trigger and hit my mark, piercing its chest and striking its heart. Three more to go.

William slashes his sword right into the face of another one that got close too close, it cries in pain and rams into the one next it. Both tumble to the ground as a massive tree collapses on them.

He grins in victory, and points towards the last horse following us. I load and aim the crossbow again. I swear I see its' eyes widen as my bolt finds a new home directly between its eyes.

* * *

Eventually we clear the fire and the forest around us is replaced by farm land and fields. We all breathe a collective sigh in relief as the adrenaline starts to fade from our systems. We're all so tired but we continue in search of a motel or something.

We find a lone road and follow it until we find a ratty looking motel. At this point we could care less. Steven ties the horse to a lamppost and we quickly shuffle inside.

The attendant gives us a strange look, no doubt confused by our burned clothes. She looks at me like I'm a murderer or something before it occurs to me that I probably do. I never changed from my bloody clothes, so I almost certainly look like some kind of highway slasher maniac.

What a sight we must be, three bloody, burned teens arriving at a near abandoned motel on a crazy screeching demon horse. Thankfully she takes our money and gives us the key to our room and leaves us be.

Our room is as far from luxury as Aphrodite is to humility. It's a small room with a single queen-sized bed and a nasty looking bathroom. We drop our bags to the floor, close and lock the door behind us and pile onto the bed.

We could care less about sharing or being proper at this point and sleep quickly overtakes us as we find comfort and safety in one another's presence.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Hey, all. Welcome to chapter 5! Hope you enjoy this one, I had a lot of fun writing it. Big thanks to my friend, Thetruehero for letting me use their character. Check out their stories, they're really good!**

* * *

 _With Samson, Fall 1965_

It was fairly late in the morning when we all woke up again, our tired bodies refusing anytime earlier.

We freshened and packed up quickly after waking up, time isn't a luxury when a pack of giants are chasing after you.

Thankfully the horse Steven tied up was still outside when we left our room. I really wish we had a saddle for it, riding on a horse really sucks without one especially if the horse hates your guts.

The horse snorts at us as we walk over to it, probably saying some nasty remarks in horse language. Not sure if horse language is real or not but the horse is still rude regardless.

All of us mount up and we make our way north, our map tells us that Bennington is only a few miles down the road.

"Hey, William." I ask him.

He looks back over to me. "Yeah, what's up?"

"I'm just curious about the crossbow yesterday, where'd you get it?"

He smooths his hair out before responding, can't look bad for the ladies. "I got it from Mom, she thought we could use something with range since we're all swordsman. We suck with a bow so she gave me something mechanical to make up for our shit skills." I nod in agreement.

* * *

We pass the time with some odd banter, trying to calm our frazzled nerves from yesterday. Thankfully we encountered nothing on the roads.

It didn't take us long to reach the town, we did get a few odd looks riding into town on a horse. I'm glad Steven knows how to keep the horse under control, this thing really doesn't like us at all.

William and Steven split off from me to go and gather some materials; Steven's getting food -for us and the horse, he wants to see if he can buy its love with carrots and apples- and William is running off to go and get more clothes for us to change into and see about transportation.

I decided to stay back and watch the horse, Steven has it tied to a light post again but we're being cautious in case it freaks out and tries to hurt someone. That and my bloodied appearance would probably cause issues if I tried to go out and buy things.

Hopefully the giants are smart enough to avoid a fight in the middle of a town, I've been hearing rumors about nasty things happening to those that stress The Mist too much, demigod and monster alike.

I get a few varied looks from passerby's, some are nasty, and some are concerned. No one tries to approach though. I do and don't appreciate this.

I hang around for a bit with the horse, we really should give it a name soon. Just calling it 'Horse' would be a little weird and confusing.

After a bit some people do occasionally approach Horse, they scamper off quickly when he tries to bite their fingers. He doesn't try to kick, thankfully, since I threatened a prompt neutering if he did.

Passerby's did scurry away from us a bit quicker after they heard me say that though, I probably should've been quiet with my threats. Geez, it's like they've never heard a bloody Asian boy threaten a horse before!

"Cool horse, man!" I jump a little as a voice sneaks up from behind me. Gods this person was silent!

Turning around a see a rather short young man, he's probably under five-foot just guessing. He's about my age with dark hair, pretty green eyes and tan skin. He's actually really relaxed around me, and his emotions show no hostility towards me. Huh, he's genuinely okay with me.

He's dressed fairly casual, but I can tell it's 'high end' from the fabric and the stitching. Steven's imparted some knowledge of quality fabrics to all of us, which is why he's trusting William to buy good clothes for us.

The boy extends a hand towards the horse with a pleasant smile, "Name's Max! Man, this horse is huge! I've never seen one this big, what kind is it?" He runs his hand along the neck, Horse gets a little antsy but stops when I give him ' _The Look'._

I'm not really sure how magic horse breeding works, so I just choose to be a smart ass.

"He's a fire breathing horse, probably the one that caused the forest fire out in the state park yesterday." His eyes widen before he starts snickering.

"Man, you're a funny dude!" He offers me a friendly hand shake and I oblige, "My name's Samson, It's very nice to meet you."

He gives me a funny look as he looks down at my shirt. "You okay, man? You look like you just got done axing somebody up."

I look down at my shirt, face neutral. "This, I got it from a girl." He gives me a bewildered stare in return. "She was crazy."

"Ah!" He snaps his finger and nudges my shoulder with his elbow. "Never stick it in crazy, that's what my bro always told me!" His goofy smile's back, "Come on, Sam! Let's grab a bite to eat, my treat."

Well, I'm not going to pass up free food, father raised me better. Thankfully the diner we're going to is just down the road, so I can still keep an eye on Horse and watch for my brothers in case they come back before I'm done eating.

The diner is one of those old fifties sit in ones, just like the one father and I used to go to when I was young. We take our seats and flip through the menu. It's a real classic burger and shake joint, these places are all the rage right now and I absolutely love to visit them when I can.

I'm glad that we're the only ones here right now, I've seen these places attract a bad crowd before. As a demigod a bad crowd usually has some incognito monsters mixed in somewhere.

Max and I chat for bit as we order our food. He orders two extra meals when I tell him my brothers are somewhere in town, I offer to pay their meals but he waves me off.

"Don't worry about Sam! My families pretty well off and so's my allowance!" Max is a pretty generous guy, but I am curious about something.

"So, where's 'Sam' coming from?" The waitress drops our food off and hands me two bags containing my brother's meals.

Max picks off a couple fries before answering. "It's just a nick name, everyone's got one for their friends. So Sam -Samson, Max – Maximillian."

Huh, neato. I guess normal people abbreviate their names. I've got to think of something for my brothers, I bet they'll love it.

"I've got a nickname, sort of." Max raises an eyebrow. "Oh yeah, what is it?"

I probably shouldn't say it, but I've already mentioned it. Too late to turn back now.

"It's 'The Mystic'." He gives me a curious look. "Why's that?"

"Because-" I lean forward some. "-I'm magic."

He gives me a strange look beforing choosing to laugh it off. After that he starts to dig into his food.

I tear through mine like a starving dog though, I haven't eaten anything since the marathon yesterday! Max raises a curious eyebrow but doesn't say anything.

Eventually he looks out the window at scoffs at something outside. I follow eyes and see he's looking at this group of oddly dressed people. They've all got flowing and loose clothes, as compared to everyone else who has proper dress shirts or button ups.

Max is pretty riled up from just looking at them, I can feel his anger and passion rolling off him like waves.

"God, fuckin flower children."

I raise an eyebrow at him as he keeps glaring at the group. "What's wrong with them?"

He slams his fist onto the table. "They're what's wrong with this country! They sit around and pass their drugs onto kids, they make em' lazy! They don't work for anything good, just lay around and judge the rest of us for doing something with our lives!"

Wow, he's pretty passionate about this.

"So, what would you do about?" He looks at me again, I can tell he hasn't thought much about 'what' he wants to do with his life.

"I dunno, maybe I'll be a cop or something? I want to help people, I just don't really know, you know?"

I hum and take a sip from my cola. "Maybe a lawyer?"

"A lawyer?" He looks to the side, likely in deep thought. "What can a lawyer do?"

"Well, a lot actually." I point out towards the hippies outside. "Lawyers are the ones who work against injustice in society, they'd prosecute and punish the people who work around law. It's an honorable position if you're an honorable man."

Max seems enamored and driven now, like he's just gotten a huge revelation. He gives me a toothy grin. "You know, you're pretty smart, Sam. Like a sage or something, you're wise as shit!"

I like that, being called wise is probably the most flattering thing you can say to a child of Athena. What a flirt.

* * *

We keep eating for a bit longer until we hear the bell on the door chime open. About six men of various size and height pile in. They're all wearing leather jackets and their hairstyles look a lot like, Elvis?

Oh, I remember these guys, Chiron mentioned to me that they're called greasers. They're supposed to be thugs or something. I feel Max start to panic and curse silently under his breath.

The goons swagger over and surround our table. Whom I assume to be the leader leans over our table, he gives me a passing glance before leering over Max.

"Hey there, Max baby." Oh, for the love of Zeus he even talks like Elvis. "I've been hearing some things about ya. That you've been tattling to the lovely Law of this town."

Max shrinks under Elvis's glare, but I remain calm. I've seen significantly scarier things in the past few days then this guy will in his entire life.

"H-hey Carson." Max is shaking a bit, Carson and his goons are bad news. I can feel the malignance in their emotions except for one, the big guy in the back. I can't feel his at all which means, he isn't human. My sword's still in the bag with the horse, but my dagger is on my belt.

Carson pulls something from his jacket and slams it and his hand down on the table, it's a folded switch blade. Max nearly jumps out of skin but tries to maintain his goofy grin.

"So, uh, what're ya doing here? I-I thought you were busy with working with that kid from Long Island." Oh, for fucks sake, Richard! If this is your fault I swear I'm going to lock you in the cabin for a year!

Carson chooses to ignore Max and looks over to me. "What's with the chink here? I didn't think you'd hang out with one after what they did to your brother."

I look back to Max, there's a sadness in his eyes. I can only guess something happened to his brother in the war. He meets my eyes and I give him a sympathetic look, he smiles back. I can tell he appreciates it.

Carson smacks the back of my head. "Hey! I'm talking to you, eyes up!"

I sigh deeply and raise my hand. Carson seems confused and goes to say something. I cut him off with a snap of my fingers. An explosion of air and a loud snap like a firework explode from my hand and Carson and his goons go glassy eyed.

"Shouldn't you be back home with your families?"

The thugs don't say anything, but they quickly clear out of the diner. Max looks over at me, he's amazed and dumbfounded by what just happened.

"Are you a wizard!" He's really excited, almost visibly trembling and his eyes are full of joy and interest.

I shrug my shoulders. "Something like that. I probably shouldn't have done it though. For what it's worth, Max, I'm sorry." He looks dumbfounded before becoming frightened as I snap my fingers again.

"You won't remember any of this." Max still looks confused. Shit, is he?

"What, what do you mean?" Huh, the mist didn't work, he must be clearsighted.

Someone clears their throat. We turn and look back to the door. It's the big guy from the group. No denying it now, he's definitely not human.

The big guy grins at us, his teeth are crooked and cracked. His eyes and mine meet as we size the other up, my hand rolls down to my dagger in anticipation.

"Child of Athena, your slight will not be unpunished." His voice is deep and guttural, and his body crack and croaks as he grows in size. Seven feet, nine feet. He grows until his head reaches the high ceiling.

Max looks completely horrified as screams escape his mouth. The giant ignores his cries and grabs a chair and throws directly at me. I use my telekinetic powers and redirect it midair, so it smashes through the window we sat next to.

The giant roars and lunges towards us, I grab Max by the arm and yank him through the broken window.

We land on our feet and I rush us out across the street, ignoring the confused pedestrians as I run pass. I pull us to a stop past the intersection.

Max looks like he's about to have a panic attack, he's breathing hard and hurried and looking around in paranoia like a monsters about to lunge at him from the shadows. He's not entirely wrong but that's not what he needs to worry about right not, so I shake him hard to get his attention.

"Max! You've got to get out of here, get out of town or something!" He wants to argue, but the look of determination on my face shuts him up. He takes a handkerchief and a pen from his pocket and writes something down before handing it to me.

"You're gonna tell me what's going on later, okay?" He nods and wishes me luck before running down the street and out of sight.

The wall of the diner explodes out as the giants rushes through it. People start screaming and running away as the monster roars in rage.

I tuck the fabric in my pocket and turn around to run away. As I turn around, I duck and barely avoid being crushed as something large races over my head. Looking towards it I see that it's Horse! He's lying on his side on the concrete, unmoving. Fuck, I hope he's not dead! I turn around once again and see another gnarled giant. He must've thrown him, the bastard!

I look back and forth between the two giants as they start to approach, trying to figure out the best plan.

I decide to rush the one that threw Horse, it grins and tries to smack me with his arm. Fortunately I'm much faster and I roll underneath and between his legs and slash at his heels.

It roars in pain and slams head first onto the concrete. I race over and drive my dagger into the back of its head, causing it to die instantly and puff away in a cloud of dust.

I look up and my eyes widen as the other giant races past me, screaming as his entire body is being burned by fierce fire.

I sigh in relief as Horse races back over to me, unharmed, and snorts, causing puffs of smoke pop from his nostrils as he leans over me. I'm glad that magical horses are sturdy, I've actually gotten a little attached to him.

I stand up and reach into the pack tied to him and pull my sword out as something explodes in the distance.

Looking over I see a gas station spewing fire and debris, the giant must've run over to it thinking the liquid gasoline was water.

My stomach knots at the thought of someone being hurt in the explosion.

I hear yelling down the street and see William and Steven racing over to me, a group of giants tearing after them eighty yards down the street, smashing vehicles and phone booths as they stomp down the street.

Shit, Horse and I race over and meet my brothers half way towards us. We all turn around and face the horde, there's only eight more giants, but they've all got wicked iron clubs and scrap metal body armor. William and Steven pull their weapons from their bags and get ready for the fight.

The hordes now within a hundred feet.

William raises his crossbow and fires, catching a savage giant in its throat. It gurgles and falls over dead. Horse, not wanting to be shown up, neighs and breaths a stream down at another giant. It screams in pain as its metal armor becomes white hot and starts cooking it alive before it too finally dies.

The ground begins to tremble and shake, we look around and see more giants racing at us from the other end of the street. There's at least twenty of them coming at us from behind, and then another twenty come and reinforce the giants to our front.

We're boxed in! There's no alleys to run down and we're too far from the intersection. The giants advance and stop a fifty feet away from us at both sides.

I can hear their breathing and see the anticipation in their eyes as they face us. They're ready to devour us now, but why haven't they rushed us yet? They've got more than enough to over power us and Horse, so why wait?

I feel the ground shake as something massive stomps towards us in the distance. Eventually the pack in front of us splits as a truly massive giant works through the crowd. The giants around us are at the very least thirteen to sixteen feet tall, but this one is almost twice the height. He's at least twenty feet and heavily armored in burnt orange metal plates, a massive club swings from his hip as he makes his way towards us.

The fire from the gas station has spread to a few neighboring houses now, causing flames and smoke to pour out of them like volcanoes and permeate the air. It's starting to feel like the forest all over again.

The big daddy giant crosses the crowd and stops thirty feet ahead of us, all of our eyes are upon him and I make out his features more. He's not quite as ugly as his subordinates, his skin is a deep tan like he's spent a lot of time around a hot fire and has scars crossing his face.

I've seen scars like those on some of the Hephaestus kids, this giant must be a forge worker of some kind then. Thinking back on it he's remarkably similar to Hephaestus back when I saw him in his temple.

His deep brown eyes bore into our gazes as he regards us for a short time.

"Children of Athena." His voice is deep, deeper than the other giant and far more potent. The power of him, even in his voice, is evident and irrefutable. Horse is neighing in panic and it takes all of our willpower not to as well.

"You've costed me quite a bit. Those hounds were valuable, irreplaceable. So much of my time and money has gone into breeding them." His face darkens in anger. "Now I've got nothing to one up those fuckers in the Labyrinth!"

Gods, how am I supposed to respond to this! He doesn't even give me the chance to speak. "Know this as I send your charred remains back to your puny gods! I, Cacus, son of Vulcan, shall be the one to send your pitiful souls to hell!"

Cacus roars in fury as white-hot fire gather in his mouth. Steven pulls us into a hug, pitifully hoping his body will spare us a fiery fate.

Cacus releases his fire and It washes over towards us, except we are never touched by it. We look up and see the fire warping around an invisible shield of some kind. Eventually the fire stops and in its place stands a tall blonde haired woman in a ragged red chiton. Her back is turned to us, but I can see her twitching minutely. She looks a little crazy; her hair is wild, but the traces of a beautiful weave are still there, and her Chiton is very clearly of high quality material, but it looks like it's been dragged through a tree.

Whomever she is Cacus clearly fears as his body becomes guarded and his face is warry. Everything is quiet and unmoving save for the odd twitch of the crazy lady.

Then, the world seems to be overtaken by a brilliant white light. It's so bright I have to close my eyes in fear I might go blind.

I peek through my eyelids after a minute and everything seems to have returned to normal. All the giants have completely disappeared, the gas station is repaired like it never exploded, the homes look brand new and people rummage around the sidewalk like half the town wasn't on fire half a minute ago.

I look back at the diner and see that it looks as brand new as when I walked in earlier with Max.

We inspect our surroundings in bewilderment for a moment longer before we focus back on the red lady in front of us. If she wasn't there I'd be half convinced nothing happened at all.

She turns around to face us and I nearly run away in fright!

Her green eyes are shining in madness with dark bags under them. Her mascara is smudged and her make up looks like it was slapped on with a towel.

Her mouth is parted in a small snarl and her lip twitches every so often.

I recognize her now, even if she's supposed to be much more gathered than she is now.

My brothers and I bow in recognition of the VERY stressed goddess of magic.

"Lady Hecate." I keep my voice neutral, Hecate's half a second from having a break down if I don't handle this the right way.

She pulls a loose strand of hair from face, "Children, my dear -sweet children." She has a disturbing and sweet smile as she walks over and kneels in front of me, placing her hands on my shoulders.

I start shaking a little as she looks me dead in the eyes. I don't know what to say so I just stay quiet.

She massages my shoulders a little, and now I'm very disturbed. Her smile is maniacal, like she's about to bite my head off.

"Dear, sweet young child. **_wHY wOuLD YoU dO tHIS_**?" Oh, gods I'm about to pee my pants now. I didn't even know someone's voice could be more frightening than Cacus's!

"U-Um."

She pulls my face in towards hers, our foreheads touching as she stares straight into my eyes. Fuck, I think we broke the mist fighting the giants!

"Now, be a good dear and not do this in public anymore okay, sweetie?"

I nod furiously, no way in hell would I now! She taps my face with her hand and her smile widens even more, oh gods I'm going puke.

"Good boy." Then everything goes white.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/n: Welcome to chapter six! I may not have mentioned this, but I don't actually own any of the PJO or HOO/ TOA books. I'm not a 53 year old corporate guy writing fanfiction.**

 **Anyways just want to thank my pal Thetruehero for all the help they've given me! Be sure to check out their stuff!**

* * *

 _With Samson, Fall 1965_

Demigod dreams have always been strange. Some dream of gods who don't know they're there, some do. Some have vivid visions of the past or present, others dream of future events. The key thing connecting these dreams is that they're practically real, they're vivid and not like a Picasso painting.

I must've been dropped on my head or something since the dream I had was closer to a trip on LSD than either of those before mentioned dreams.

All I got was a series of flashing Images and emotions. I dreamt of mother planning; of her pride and anger, I saw a junkyard burning -and felt pain and sadness that I haven't felt since discovering father's corpse, then there were two boys rescuing Prometheus and lastly, I saw a lovely manor burning to the ground and felt a mother's anguish.

I was crying when I woke up. I've never had a dream make me experience such emotion before. It felt like I was there, like I partook the events and experienced them first hand.

What frightens me the most is that potentially, I had. Or, more specifically, will.

Drying off my tears I took in my surrounding. I was in a bed in a lovely old wooden house, the rooms gave me the impression of those old historical manor's the founding fathers would have lived in hundreds of years ago.

It must be fairly early in the morning, the colors of the sky still a little dark but quickly turning blue as the sun rises.

I also note that I'm no longer in bloody and burned clothes anymore. I'm instead wearing a fancy set of silk pajamas. As happy as I am to be wearing fresh clothes, I'm just a little disturbed at the thought of someone changing me whilst unconscious.

There's a knock on the door and I freeze, I don't have my weapons on me. I quickly look around the room and spot my bag in the corner. I move over to it silently and rummage through it, looking for my weapons.

Thankfully my dagger is in the bag. I unsheathe it and hide it behind my back, calling to the person who knocked to enter.

I'm relieved when Steven appears in the door way. He struts towards me and lifts me up into his famous bone crunching, vertebrae dislocating hugs.

We embrace for a bit before he lets me go and tells me where we are and what happened. Hecate transported us to the safe house in Manchester, and apparently knocked us out as punishment for making her job of managing the mist harder.

I guess that explains the pain in the back of my head. It feels like I was decked in the back of my head by an angry Ares camper!

He continues saying William is downstairs with our older brother, and that he brought the change of clothes William had bought yesterday. He also says that Horse is with us too, and that he's outside in the fields with the our brothers horses. I sigh in relief and thank him, taking the clothes and closing the door.

* * *

After freshening up in the conjoined bathroom shower and changing into my clothes I make my way downstairs.

As I am, I take note of the hallways and decorations. This house is almost certainly an old manor of some kind. It has all the hallmark decorations of an old timey house, I also note several pictures and portraits on the wall. Some of people in old period clothes, some in clothes you saw in the thirties.

All in all, it's a lovely home but I'm much more excited to meet my older brother! Steven said he's really old for a demigod, and old demigods are extremely interesting since demigods usually die in the 'young' stage of life.

Eventually I meet up with everyone parlor and see my _elder_ brother for the first time. I take note of his features; he's much older than us -I'd guess in his sixties, he's got graying hair and our trademark grey eyes. His face is a little wrinkly but not as bad for someone of his age. He clearly takes good care of himself since his hair is styled nicely and he's wearing a fancy set of casual dress clothing.

I also note he has cane, but he's not putting his weight on it. On first glance it looks like one of those period gentleman's canes, the decorative ones. I can tell his cane is different, it's segmented and made of metal. I'm almost certain it's a hidden of some kind.

"Ah, you must be Samson." He walks over and offers me his hand with a pleasant smile. "It's a pleasure, little brother."

We shake hands and he motions me to sit down at the fancy table he had set for us. So far I'm impressed, he's quite the gentleman which is a nice change from the barbarians back at camp.

He says his name is Joseph Jacob William and formally welcomes us to Athenos Manor. He tells us that mother had it built as a temple to her in the 1800's, and eventually it became a haven for passing demigods in the area.

"Enough about me though. Tell me, why're three Athena children racing around pissing off the magic goddess?"

I blush a little in embarrassment. That whole ordeal in Bennington wasn't a good example of planning on my part.

"I uh, I didn't consider how much I angered our enemy and he set a town on fire trying to kill us." I rub the back of my head nervously, I don't want to be embarrassing to Joseph I want to be impressive!

He chuckles at my sheepishness. "Oh, don't get worked my boy! You survived another day, that means you can be better prepared for your next encounter!"

Joseph strays off into a story about how him and his friends slew an exotic darken, and how they encountered it five separate times narrowly avoiding their deaths until they formulated their final plan and tricked the beast into impaling itself on a sharpened log.

We continue bonding over our stories, William and Steven asking Joseph to tell more tales of his adventures and what life was like when he was our age.

This continues for some time until we hear a knock on the huge bay window behind us. We look over and see a young light skinned dark haired teenaged girl holding a farming hoe. I focus on her better and see that her clothes look like it's made of grass and woven sticks.

 _A Nymph_ I muse to myself. It makes sense for mother to have a caretaker of some sort related to nature that can last for a significant amount of time.

Joseph walks over and opens the window.

"Yes, Nefeli? What is it, are those damned Blemmyae trying to get inside again?"

She shakes her head, gosh she's pretty, and point over to the other side of the manor.

"No, it's a goddess, actually. It's _you know who_." She whispers the last part like she's trying not to anger someone and disappears back into the garden.

I feel Joseph's emotions flare in anger before he calms down some but is still angered some. He turns away stating he has some business to attend to right quick.

Steven, William and I share a look before getting up to follow Joseph. No way in hades are we going to stay put.

We navigate our way towards the front door and hear Joseph arguing with a woman outside on the porch.

"I've already told ya'! Your ilk aren't welcomed here, so shove off!"

Our eyes widen, he's telling the presumed goddess off! She'll kill him!

We race outside onto the porch to see whom he's yelling at. The woman looks like she's in her early twenties, but she seems really familiar. Siler eyes, auburn hair, wait a second, that's!

"Watch your tongue before I rip it out _male_!" He's telling off Artemis, is he completely insane!

Joseph hmph's, "Go right ahead, see how mother reacts when her current least favorite goddess murders her priest in her own temple!"

Artemis looks like she just might, but exhales in indignation and calms down. She uncurls her fists and smooths out her jacket.

"Listen, Joseph, I just want to talk. It's about what happened back then."

He looks devastated for a moment before his anger rises again. "We've nothing to talk about. You presented your punishment to those boys and now they're dead."

He turns around and starts to make his way back inside, his voice becoming dejected. "Just clear off, it's long in the past and I don't want to relive that day."

"I was wrong, Joseph." He stops, back still turned but his hand trembles on the door handle.

"What do you mean?" It's a question and a demand. Artemis still maintains her calm, she must clearly recognize her wrongdoing in whatever the past event was as she hasn't put an arrow in his back.

"Your brother, Samson opened my eyes to the deception of one of my hunters. The very same one who accused your friends."

"They were boys, _children_." His voice is shaking, "You had them torn apart as animals." She continues to stare at his back, but her eyes soften almost unnoticeably.

"They couldn't even die fighting. You just sicked your dogs on them. I can still hear their screams, you know? I begged and pleaded for their innocence. They were no rapists, but it didn't matter. You chose _her_ word over any evidence to the contrary."

"Just, leave, _please_." He makes his way back inside, and as he closes the door Artemis parts him with three words I never thought I'd hear a goddess say.

"Joseph, I'm sorry." He doesn't say anything, but the door stays open for just a bit longer before losing.

Now it's just the four of us, my brother's and I not sure what to say or do. Artemis, Kara and Joseph have a clear history and I'm almost certain I know what it is. Steven and William give me an empathetic look, they know what they almost lost if I hadn't tricked Kara.

Once again, I'm appreciative of my brothers and I try not to imagine life without them.

We all look to Artemis, she has her eyes closed like she's in deep thought. I wonder if she's going over whatever events Joseph was talking about, perhaps she's reimagining a scenario where she did listen to Joseph.

She opens her eyes after a moment. "Nephew, boys. Gather your equipment, I have a task for you."

* * *

After gathering our bags and rearming in the manor armory we meet Artemis back outside again. She motions for us to follow her and so we do.

The manor is mostly isolated outside of Manchester, so our walk takes us through a nice nature walk until we stop at a small hill overlooking the town. She points towards a large garbage dump outside the city.

She wrinkles her nose in disgust, "Inside that trash yard you will find a legendary drakon. The beast battled your mother during the gigantomachy and is now nesting there."

My brothers and I share between ourselves, a drakon is no light foe and if it battled against mother it will likely hold a grudge against us as her sons.

Artemis continues, "The beast is powerful but weakened. Cacus recently fought with the beast and has wounded its power."

She turns to look at us. "Do not be deluded, it is still a worthy foe. Slay this beast and I shall aid you in your coming battle against Cacus and his remaining monsters."

She smirks as our eyes widen, Cacus is still alive! "Don't be foolish, Cacus is the son of a god and a giant. Not even Hecate can destroy him so easily."

Her eyes pass along us, almost like mother's when she first met us in the cabin, scanning for weakness. When she meets mine I see something, a twinkle of some kind. I wonder what it could mean?

She parts us with one last piece of advice. "Steady yourselves, as children of your mother the gifts she has given you will be more than enough to survive and succeed." We look away as she flashes away in brilliant light. Once again, I feel the power and knowledge of a god's true form and I'm more motivated than ever!

If I can complete these tools, I'll be able to understand and solve the mystery of seeing and _surviving_ the beholding of the true form of a god!

What can be learned, what can be gained! I must know!

I shake myself from my thoughts, right now we need to plan how we're going to bring this serpent down!

William starts first. "Drakons are tough but they aren't dragons. Most are just venomous and have scales like an alligator, they're tough but anything sharp can slice through. They aren't invulnerable, just large and fast."

Steven continues. "Drakons aren't known for being smart, but they're angry and prideful. They often have a paralyzing gaze, so we take out its eyes. We can use that against it somehow, blind it and lead it around. Use our small size to our advantage, like with the giants."

I nod and put forth my thoughts. "Artemis mentioned it was already injured, if it has open wounds we can take that opportunity. Like what Joseph said, use its aggression against it. Junkyards are full of sharp things, we can trick it into smashing into them, make it bleed and put it down when it's weak enough."

We have it planned out, Steven and I draw its attention with his flash grenades and I make long cuts to weaken it while William aims for the eyes with his crossbow. If we can blind it, it'll be all the easier to trick it into slamming into sharp objects.

We make our way through the town and into the junkyard. The junkyard is concealed in the mist, so if we can keep the fight here we should have no issues with Hecate.

The place is surprisingly large, looking at some of the rubbish I can tell most of the waste comes from Olympus. Broken weapons, expired food and anything else you can imagine throwing out fills the landscape.

Thankfully this doesn't belong Hephaestus, but we still refuse the temptation to dig for treasure. The potential for a cursed object keeps us from being greedy.

We traverse the maze of trash for a good while, not seeing much signs of monster activity let alone signs of a drakon. The creature must be asleep then. Drakons, like dragons, are notoriously heavy sleepers.

This works to our advantage, however, as it gives us time to plan out our attack. William points out several massive spears poking out from the various refuse piles. Likely cyclops weapons, they're one of the few large humanoid species that would wield weapons like that.

Eventually we map out the whole junkyard, but we don't actually find the monster. We did come across a large indent in the dirt, it's at least fifteen feet long. We knew right away what it was, a footprint.

We steel ourselves and ready our weapons. The drakon is likely hiding under a pile somewhere, so we'll have to make noise.

Steven walks over to a large metal beam and grabs a metal pipe by it. He smacks the beam, the metal reverbing and amplifying the noise. Nothing happens so he does it a few more times.

After his sixth his we hear metal shifting and colliding behind us. Turning around we see the pile rise and fall, revealing a massive snake like eye! Steven and I are paralyzed slightly under its gaze, but William averted his gaze.

William, keeping his eye downwards, raises his crossbow and fires his bolt, striking the cornea and continuing through the pupil and into the lens of its' eye!

The beast roars in fury and pain lashing out with its claw trying to bat us away. We quickly maneuver away, dodging the refuse and metal until we're a sufficient distance away.

William runs off in a different direction to get a better shot at the remaining whilst Steven and myself ready to distract it.

The beast pulls itself from the pile and faces us, it's iridescent scales sparkling in the sunlight like they were made from rainbows. I notice several patches on its body where the scales are pale and translucent. Those must be the wounds it suffered from Cacus!

The beast tries to angle its right eye at us, but Steven quickly throws his flash grenade and it explodes directly on its last good eye!

It roars in fury and pulls a claw to its face, raking its talons across the eyelid. Steven and I rush to its side and start slashing at the weak scales.

It takes several slashes to cut through the meat, but we get deep and back up as noxious blood starts pouring from the reopened wounds.

The drakon raises its body and tries to slam it down on us. We roll away quickly and put distance between us and the serpent.

It chooses to ignore us and pulls the rest of its body from the nest. The beast is absolutely massive! It only has two front arms but is long like a python, almost two hundred feet at a guess!

It crawls onto a large waste pile and leers down at us. It opens its mouth and starts sucking air, a noxious smell flows down at us from its maw, saliva dripping from its teeth and onto the metal underneath it. The metal bubbles and fizzes from the saliva, it must spit acid!

I point this to Steven and he quickly tosses one of his new Greek fire grenades into its mouth, causing the wicked green flame to rush down its throat where it meets the acid and explodes in a brilliant flash of green and purple fire.

The monster roars in pain as smoke and fire pour from it like its inside are a furnace, which they likely are now.

It doesn't die, unfortunately, and screams a shrill cry at us like it's a massive demonic serpent toddler. We must've damaged the vocal cords, and hopefully destroyed its ability to spit acid.

It roars again and races at us from its small hill, mouth agape and ready to devour us. I roll away while Steven lets off another grenade into its mouth again before dodging himself.

The beast _screams_ and banks to the right, spewing unnatural onto nearby trash heaps, and slams its side into the pile behind.

Our plan is working as the speed and weight of its body forces bits of metal through its scales and into its soft flesh. It makes a half whine half screech as it yanks its body free, even more toxic bloody pouring from the new wounds.

It raises its head straight in the air and drags its massive tail through a pile of metal, throwing it up in the air at us like an even deadlier version of lawn darts.

I use my telekinetic powers to push the debris away from us, making it hit in a large area around us instead.

It glares at us and rushes us again, mouth closed this time. As it does another bolt strikes its good eye, not quite blinding it but severely damaging its vision. It halts its charge at us and faces William, who is standing on top of another large mound.

His eyes widen as he tries to flee from the hill. He's not fast enough as the drakon slams straight through it! Steven and I scream and race after the beast, intent on finishing it off for good! The monster raises its head high into the air and looks down at us again, causing us to stop our charge and split off from each other in two directions, hoping to confuse it by spreading out.

Unfortunately, I was in vision of its unblinded eye and it shrieks and brings its head down towards me, hoping to either smash me or gobble me to shreds in its teeth!

I barely dodge as it slams hard into the ground I just previously occupied. I hear a nasty crunch come from its nose but keep running until I'm hidden behind a pile of trashy magazines.

I hear it shrieking in an oddly humorous and nasally fashion, like it has a bad cold or something.

I look around and try and spot the huge spears I saw earlier. I see them but they're far off in the distance. If I can get it to charge again it might run straight into them! But if I do that I'll have to be quick and get close enough that it doesn't change directions and follow me if I dodge.

I gather my breath for a moment, this is dangerous, but we have a good chance to end this if I can pull this off. Steeling my courage, I jump from my hiding spot and start yelling at the beast.

"Hey, you dumb overgrown noodle! Over here!"

It snaps its head to me and I try not to flinch at its disgusting visage. Its snout is crooked and smashed, teeth are missing and broken, smoke still escapes from its jaws and blood is pouring from its eyes.

It hisses gutturally at me and picks up it pace as it starts to charge me.

I'm already sprinting faster than I ever thought possible towards my trap. I can feel the ground shaking in fury, but I reach the pile and drop to the ground making my body as flat as possible.

The wind explodes over my head as the beast just barely passes over by body. I even can feel some of its scales tickling my hair as it flies over.

I roll away as its body slams onto the ground and rise back to my feet.

My shoulders sag in relief, a spear pierced through its mouth and the tip is pointing through the back of its cranium. It twitches a little bit before going limp and puffing into a massive pile of gold dust.

Something shines in the dust, so I walk over and pull it from the 'corpse'. It's a massive rainbow-colored scale.

I don't revel in victory, though, as I run back to the destroyed trash hill and try and find William. I'm damn near hyperventilating now, William has to be okay! Please, let him be okay…

I find Steven by the pile and my heart _sinks_. He's cradling a badly wounded William in his arms, oh gods his sides been gored! Steven is forcing ambrosia down his throat and I try and be relieved. William is breathing, but gods he must be in so much pain!

I don't know what to do, so I kneel down and try and comfort my brothers. I do my best to ignore the blood, the stench of the iron in the air makes me want to throw up!

We stabilize William with loads of nectar and ambrosia and bring him back to Joseph at the manor. I was horrified when Joseph told us William was poisoned, but he quickly followed up with him saying he has an antidote.

He shoos us from the manor infirmary and Steven and I crash on the porch chairs as the adrenaline and finally wears off. My head is in my hands, I'm trying to calm down but the fear of losing my brother is crushing.

Steven wraps an arm around me and I finally start calming down. Logically I know William will be fine, we got him an antidote and we stopped the bleeding. Emotionally I'm shaken. I almost lost a brother today, and that is _terrifying_.

I'm glad my brothers are who they are because his kind words keep me from panic. They're simple words, but wise just by themselves.

'It's going to be okay.'


	7. Chapter 7

**A/n: Hey, all, welcome to chapter 7! I hope you guys enjoy, this one will probably be a little slower as it's the in-between and fallout chapter from the last one, so we'll see how this manifests in Samson's mind! We also learn just a bit about the potential nature of Samson's special project, see you guys in the next chapter.**

* * *

 _With Samson, Fall 1965_

After my little miniature freak out, Steven and myself chose to relax on the porch with one another. Both of us are freaking exhausted from our little battle with Smaug now that our adrenaline highs have worn off.

I'm still worried about William, the drakon chucked a huge amount of his side out and poisoned him for good measure. What an asshole! At least the fucker is dead, and Joseph promised us our brother is stable and recovering.

Speaking of Joseph, I really want to ask about what happened between Artemis, Kara and him. It must've been something important if Artemis herself came back to apologize and not kill him when he started yelling her. At the same time, it must be truly traumatic if an _elder demigod_ is still affected by it when compared to the likely countless horrors he has seen in his long life.

It's getting close to sun down now and I wonder if Artemis will show up soon. She did promise us help with Cacus for slaying the drakon after all.

Gods what if it's one of those 'indirect help' kind of godly help. Gods those are the worst, they're basically the discounted store brand version of assistance!

Steven passed out on his side of the couch a while ago and I wonder why Joseph put a leather couch on his porch. Maybe he's so rich that he did it as a 'because I can' sort of thing.

Thankfully Artemis flashes in in a blinding display of silver light not long after dusk. I wonder why gods always teleport like that? Maybe they're just showing off or trying to be intimidating. Huh, not that I think about it, I wonder what'll happen to me when I build my special equipment. Will I absorb the divine essence and become a god? Or will I just have a better understanding of what divinity means?

Questions for another day, I have to survive until then and pissing off Artemis really affects those chances. I stand from the sofa and bow respectfully.

"Lady Artemis, I hope we performed to your expectations."

She's smiling when I rise, but not the kind she usually has when people grovel at her feet. This one is closer to mothers when I showed her my blueprints for the mana-pool, It's almost like she's proud. Did we actually impress the goddess of the hunt?

"Greetings, hero. You have slain the drakon just as I have instructed, and I am a goddess of her word."

She snaps her fingers and three folded track jackets appear in my arms. They're all silver and reflective, almost glowing even. Just like my dagger these are decorated with intricate lines and symbols. What's most curious about them is the feeling of magic pulsing off of them.

Before I can say thank you, Artemis walks over to Steven and gives him a sharp kick in the shin. He jolts awake, clearly surprised out of his dream.

He bows just like I did when he realized Artemis here and was staring at him expectantly. She gives him a slightly unimpressed look before turning her attention back to me.

"These jackets are enchanted to protect the wearer from any kind of fire, natural or magic, and have celestial silver woven into the fabric. They'll be as tough as any armor back in your camp. Wear them with pride but take heed, you are not my Hunters, but you'll use these in my name."

The air turns heavy around us and her eyes become fully serious. "Not even my lieutenant has equipment such as this. I expect only the best from you here on out. Good luck, demigods, I _will_ be watching."

We look away as she disappears in a flash of light again and the air returns back to normal.

"Phew, glad she's gone!" We nearly jump out of our skin and turn towards the voice. It's Nefeli standing off to the side of the porch, leaning against the railings.

She clears her throat sheepishly, "Anyways, Joseph wants to see you guys, he's got some news for ya." She turns and skips away back around the house, likely returning to her tree for the night.

* * *

Back inside Steven and myself meet with Joseph inside the infirmary. William is passed out on the bed, he seems to be breathing fine but he's sweating like he has a bad case of pneumonia and his pale face is flushed red.

"Boys, we have things to discuss." His voice is neutral as he puts a wet towel on Williams forehead. I'm getting anxious, Joseph has always had a mirth to his voice, so _very_ this is serious. He turns and faces us.

"William is sick, I've cleared out the poison and his body is well on its way to recovery from being gored, but I had to use a great deal of ambrosia and nectar to keep him alive. He's fallen ill from it and he'll be bedridden for several weeks."

"He'll survive then?" Steven is trying to maintain his calm, but I can feel his emotions. He's a second away from becoming frantic, I'm not far behind him.

Joseph raises his hand to try and placate us. "He'll live, but you must finish your quest and hurry him back to camp, where he'll be truly safe. I can safeguard him in the meantime, but I'm not an army. Long term quests only become progressively more dangerous, look what happened to Odysseus."

We nod our heads, faces grim. We'll have to finish the quest with only the two of us, and Cacus is still out there somewhere. I give Joseph one of the jackets and tell him about its powers, he'll need it if Cacus attacks the manor instead of Steven and me during our quest.

Before we all retire for the night, Steven and myself decide that we'll spend the day tomorrow preparing and rearranging for the quest without William. We'll drive the morning after tomorrow with an old truck Joseph will loan to us. The plan is to stock the truck with all the food and gas we'll need as to avoid stopping anywhere and potentially drawing the attention of Cacus or other monsters.

The following morning Steven and myself set to work getting everything prepared for tomorrows journey. Steven went through the armory and gathered a bunch of equipment while I pooled over the map planning out which highway would be the best to follow and ration out our meals for the trip.

We never saw Joseph around the manor, though, and we had some questions that we needed him to answer. After searching for a while we head outside to find Nefeli and ask her if she knows anything.

She's tending to garden outside when we find her and ask about where Joseph could've gone.

"Joseph? Yeah, he took off this morning. Probably got nabbed by the Blemmyae in town if he's not back by now." She's completely unworried about him getting kidnapped.

"If ya want, you can go rescue him. They live inside this old abandoned hotel in town, one of ya'll can go get him while the other keeps workin' on your plan, they aren't that dangerous if you're smart about it."

Steven and I are anxious to split up, if Cacus attacks only one of us will be there to fight him. Unfortunately, we don't have much of a choice. Someone has to watch the manor and make sure William is stable. We decide that I should go and rescue Joseph, Steven has more first aid experience and is better suited to care for William than I am.

* * *

Finding the hotel Nefeli mentioned wasn't too hard, Manchester is a fairly wealthy town and a rundown hotel would probably only exist because the mist blocks it from mortal view.

The place is fairly large, at least four stories and almost a block wide. Nefeli was right when she said it was rundown, most of the windows are boarded up and the white paint has almost completely peeled off.

The whole place has an ax murderer vibe to it, but I'm thankful that the monsters living there are easy to manipulate and not overly strong by themselves. What makes them dangerous is their ability to use tools and their numbers, potentially.

It sure makes me glad that I'm actually a fairly stealthy individual, all those years of hiding from Ares campers and dodging the Aphrodite girls honed my skills like a ninja. Just don't tell my dad I said that, he'd raise hell if he heard that!

Getting inside and moving around the hotel was also a simple task. Everything was poorly lit and so far, I've seen no Blemmyae anywhere.

This place is definitely lived in, though, as there are waste baskets everywhere and it's remarkably clean and tidy inside, it's just poorly lit with candles, they probably have no electricity running here.

I continue through the hotel and start hearing voices coming from this archway at the end of this hall. Sneaking over to it, I peek around the corner, it's a good-sized dining room with a large table in the center. I see the source of the voices far off to the end of the table; it's two male looking humanoids wearing Greek armor, however they are far from human as where their heads should be is just open air.

Blemmyae have their faces in their chests, so they lack heads entirely and as their ears are hidden in their armpits they also have poorer hearing in general, making them an easy enemy to sneak past and spy on. The most _interesting_ thing about them, however, is that they are likely the politest beings on the planet.

A suitably intelligent person could theoretically convince them to do anything by manipulating their obsession with politeness, and as a child of Athena mental manipulation is among my list of skills.

I listen in on their conversation and wait, now's not the right time to expose myself and break my cover.

"Hello, brother, how is the prisoner doing now?"

"Oh, you know we don't call them prisoners. They are guests, prisoner is a potentially rude term. He is sleeping well now, the medicine worked wonders."

"Ah, I am most sorry please excuse my manners."

"It is okay, brother, we should continue our tasks. The interrogator is with him in the basement now, and everyone else would be upset if they returned and we were caught being lazy."

I ignore the rest of their conversation and wait until they disappear down another hallway, their conversation revealed the basement is where they're holding Joseph.

It also seems like there's only a few of them here now, but the rest will be returning soon. I have a shorter window of opportunity to get us out of here.

Sticking to the shadows I work my way around until I find the basement entrance and slip through.

The basement was a little less cleaned than upstairs and much more rundown. Though looking around at the rubble and refuse, everything seemed like it was placed there on purpose to create the idea of a spooky atmosphere instead of natural decay.

I applaud their decoration skills, it's very well done.

Anyways I lay low and make my way towards the backroom, it's likely the most secure place to hold a prisoner. I crack open the door and peek in, the Blemmyae who must be the interrogator has his back to me as he sits resting in a chair.

I angle my vision and see a large metal cage towards the back of the room, it looks like there's someone inside.

I push the door open enough and slip through, silently making my way towards him. Thank the gods for their bad hearing so I didn't even have to try hard to sneak up to him.

I run my blade through his back and pierce where I guess his brain would be and he quickly dies in a puff of dust. Huh, easier than I thought.

I rummage through the dust and pull a key out. Unlocking the cage, I lean down and shake Joseph awake. He angles to face, but something seems off. His clothes are wrong and I don't recognize his features.

Holy fuck that isn't Joseph!

No seriously who the hell is this! This is just some random bum, where the fuck is Joseph!

"Psst, Samson!" I whip around to the door and see Joseph crouching in the doorway, what the actual hell is going on!

He comes over to, "Samson, you're here, good. I need your help!" I'm not sure what's going on, but Joseph doesn't seem to care.

"Look, I need you to help me out here. I lost my truck to these guys a while ago and I need to steal it back from them."

Oh gods, what is wrong with all my brothers?

"They've got the keys holed up here somewhere with all their loot."

"Their loot? Why do they have treasure?"

He just shrugs. "No idea, I usually sneak in here every so often to take their valuable and resell them to pay for rent and things."

…He pays rent? Why the hell would a priest need to pay the rent in a goddess's temple? Joseph taps me in the shoulder with his cane, pulling me from my confusion.

"Follow me, they keep their stuff upstairs. We can nab it and be out of here in a few minutes."

"What about the guy in the cage, who is he?"

"Him? He's just a bum who ran this place a while ago and convinced the Blemmyae he could be ransomed off to someone for a lot of money. Of course he never told them who, so they spend a lot of their time trying to get him to tell them who."

Huh, well I guess he's got everything figured out then.

Joseph tells me to come with him and I follow along halfheartedly, I'm much too confused to care and just a little angry I got roped into another side quest.

We leave the basement and wind up back in the hall, there's one of the guards at the other end with their back to us, he seems to be resting his shoulder lazily against the wall.

Normally you'd either leave them be or try and sneak over for a silent kill, it's just natural and logical to do so.

I was pretty damn surprised then when Joseph started sprinting down the hall way at a speed Artemis would be proud of.

The Blemmyae turned around just in time to see Joseph drive his cane straight between its eyes -or is it the chest? - and puff into golden dust. I am continuing to be and more confused by my time here, he just drove the blunt end of a cane through the monster equivalent of a human body, how strong is this old man!?

Joseph waves me over to keep following and just I shake my head and make my way back towards him. He leads us into the spiral stairwell and up to the very top floor.

We maneuver around the hall and stop behind the corner, Joseph and myself peek around the corner and spot a guard sleeping in a chair. Joseph points out the key hanging from its waist.

"He holds the key. Be careful, it's been enchanted to disappear if he wakes up. He's been a light sleeper ever since we took his kidney."

Uh, what? "You took his kidney?"

"Aye, now that was a card game to remember… you really had to be there."

Joseph looks away, lost in fond memories it seems by the strange look on his face.

I roll my eyes and sneak over towards the sleeping guard. I was a bit more careful than earlier, but it still wasn't too difficult to snatch the key and unlock the door he was guarding. I aim my sword and prepare for the kill shot but Joseph motions for me to stop.

I raise an eyebrow but still comply, maybe Joseph knows this guy personally or something.

He leads us quietly into the room and I nearly gasp at the contents.

The whole room is full of silver decor and chests full of jewelry and other sparkling goods. Joseph walks over to the wall and pulls car keys from the nail they were hanging from. Good, we've got our transportation.

He wasn't done, however, as he moves over to corner and points out two smaller chests.

"Here, take one and I'll get the other. They're loaded with drachma, these babies'll keep the manor running for a long time"

I choose to follow along, there's nothing like robbery and murder to bring siblings closer, that and maybe I'll get a cut of the booty for helping out. We grab to loot and make our way downstairs and back into the entrance way.

As we walk towards the door I ask him a question, "Hey, Joseph, what's up with the one guy back upstairs? Did you know him or something?"

He just shrugs his shoulders. "I owe em' for the whole kidney thing. It's my way of paying back my debt."

Just business huh? I can appreciate that.

Joseph and myself smile at each other as we exit back outside. Despite this being one of the strangest days I've ever had and kind of irritating it was still fun. Joseph is the only older brother I've ever had, and it's nice not being the oldest and most responsible in the family -mother doesn't count.

Anyways with how everything turned out inside the building our daring escape was practically destined be just as successful.

Well, it would be if the fates liked us. Too bad they don't, so when we walked outside we essentially walked straight into the rest of Blemmyae returning from wherever they were.

We all sort of froze when we met, but I took the time to take stock of how many there were. I quickly pass my eyes over all of them, there's twenty of them, armed with swords and a few revolvers and all of them donned in silly uniforms with shoddy metal heads attached on top of their heads, torsos?

Blemmyae biology is a strange subject.

Anyways whom I assume to be the leader steps forward.

"Hello again, Joseph." He turns to me. "And who might you be, young sir?"

I look to Joseph and he winks back at me. Seems like he's got a plan ready, so I might as well play along.

"My name is Samson, good sir. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

The leader nods/ leans forward a bit.

"I am known as Paul, it is a joy to meet one such as yourself. Unfortunately, we have to kill you know. I hope you have a pleasant time."

They all raise their various weapons, one even prepares wire in his hands to choke us out like the mafia.

Joseph quickly shouts out, however, "Wait! Just wait one damn moment! Now you're all be very rude right now."

They all look completely taken aback, almost as if someone had insulted their favorite band or told them their turkey was dry.

Paul stutters out, completely mortified, "Wh-what do you mean, my friend! We are only reacting as is proper!"

Joseph give me a side glance and grins. "Well, we ARE guests, and you haven't even tried to accommodate us, let alone set up a lunch for us all to enjoy!"

I'm back to being confused, now. Is Joseph concocting a plan to free us, or is he just trying to get a free lunch out of the people he's robbing?

* * *

As it turns out, he had no plan at all, and that's how I ended up enjoying a finely prepared lunch with a bunch of men and women who eat from mouths in their chests.

My sanity started out normal this morning, half way into the afternoon I'm ready to just stand up and start screaming, they're just so. Damn. POLITE! Unfortunately, leaving with all the drachma's and the truck means that I just have to deal with this for now. Well, and I guess get Joseph out of here too.

Joseph pokes my side, "So, what's the plan?"

I pray to all the gods I can think of to help maintain my control and keep me from having a breakdown and slapping Joseph, "We just have to bullshit these guys with politeness. Convince them it's rude to not help us load their treasure in the truck, and that it's rude to not let us see the inside of it."

He nods and takes a bite from his salad, "How do you wanna play this then? They've got us at the disadvantage here and they break into tangents a lot."

"The key to manipulation is planting ideas and convincing them that it was theirs in the first place. These guys aren't that smart, and they have a glaring mental weakness we can exploit the hell out of."

We keep eating for a bit longer, polite conversation passing between us. I try and lead the Blemmyae into topics relating to cars or what not, but these things almost have attention spans worse than a toddler!

I get so distracted trying to be polite that I don't even realize when the topic changes and I'm set back to square one!

Joseph is even less of a help, he just stuffs his face and plays along, I start to think he's actually a Blemmyae with how much he sounds like them.

The conversations and the amount of apologizing so agonizing that I almost want to cry. Eventually I reach my breaking point, I can't take this anymore and I'm going to fucking snap if I hear the word 'sorry' again!

"Samson, I am sorry to interrupt your thoughts."

…That's it.

I smile sweetly at them, they're clearly disturbed by something. I guess my smile isn't so much 'sweet' as it is 'demented' and 'I will kill you within the hour, painfully'.

"Um, I was just curious as to your thoughts about the topic at hand?"

I don't know what they were talking about, but I'm completely in bliss now, my rage has transcended me into a higher state of being.

"Well, my thoughts? Hmm, what a tricky question. I guess I can only say that you all should kill yourselves! I can even provide evidence, after all, it's only _polite_ for everyone to listen is it not?"

The chatter dies down as they all give me their full attention. Clearly, they're all disturbed and want to change the subject, but their golden rule means that they must listen to me. Perfect.

"Now, as I'm sure you're all _dying_ to know what I mean, I just want to ask a few questions for clarification. Blemmyae must be polite, it is only natural after all, right?"

They nod and murmur a few words of agreement.

"And you must act accordingly if you find yourselves being rude, correct?" They agree again, some question to themselves about where I'm going with this. But I press on.

"So, what if I told you that you all were among the rudest and impolite beings on the planet!" Their eyes widen in disbelief, surely they are the opposite of this right? Not so much.

I chuckle darkly, "Blemmyae, as I am learning now, are masters of wasting time. You obsess so much with politeness that you don't even realize that you are being selfish and taking time way from others, the rudest thing possible!"

They all gasp in disbelief and start thinking about their actions and chattering madly amongst themselves.

"You have caused such inconveniences for many for thousands of years and will continue to do so in the future. So, logically the only action you should take is to kill yourselves as to never be rude ever again! You must follow the rules, after all. You don't want to be _rude,_ do you?"

The room is quiet, but I can see the look of horror on their faces. They're clearly devastated to learn that they're actually everything they despise and try not to be. The crushing feeling of knowing their entire culture had no real purpose in the end and they wasted their entire lives following a false path must've destroyed them emotionally, so they all start wailing and crying out in mania.

They all jump up from their seats and start racing around, some impaling themselves on nearby weapons, others running themselves through with anything sharp or pointed.

Soon enough every single damned Blemmyae is dead, leaving the dining hall coated in piles and piles of dust and discarded weapons. Joseph is gaping at me, but I really don't care. This whole damned quest has only gotten us a fraction of the way to my goal and I am NOT in the mood for more distractions.

I grab my chest of drachma, kick open the front doors, drop my chest in the back of the truck parked outside and slide into the passenger's side. Joseph takes a moment, but eventually he follows suit and plops himself in the driver's seat and starts the truck.

I look out the window, but I can tell Joseph is disturbed by what just happened. His emotions are easy to read, but I'm not in the mood to fuck around right now.

Joseph wisely chooses to stay quiet and pulls the truck away from the hotel and puts us back on the road to the manor.

The short trip is silent, the atmosphere between us awkward and just a pinch uncomfortable. Now that I've calmed down some, I start to realize my actions and understand what just happened.

I lost control.

I let my temper possess my actions and I became crueler than I ever thought I could be. Shame wells up inside of me, what would mother think, my brothers? Hell, what would Artemis think? She's one of the few people who was _proud_ of me, and I don't want to disappoint her by becoming cruel and demented _like Kara_.

I feel a hand on my shoulder and I break away from my thoughts. Looking around I see that we're back at the manor, I didn't even realize we were already here.

I look over at Joseph and I see into his eyes. They're full of pity, but something else, too. _Understanding_.

"Look, kid, I know you lost your cool back there. I know it's probably eating you inside right now, and it should. The look in your eye back then, kid that wasn't natural. What matters the most, though, is that you have enough heart to be bothered by it at all."

I perk up, this is actually uplifting and the weight in my heart feels just a bit lighter.

"Everyone loses themselves sometimes, but what's important is that you can come back from it, grow stronger and learn more and more about your true self. These hard moments are key to becoming a grown person, Samson."

He pulls me into a hug and whispers softly to me. "Don't become worse, Samson, become _better_ than you are now."

I lean into his hug, he's absolutely right. I need to be better, if I don't I'll end up bitter and cruel.

We stay as we are for a long time and I'm okay with that.

For the first time in a long while, I'm actually content with just being where I am now, and I couldn't be happier.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Hey all! Here's chapter 8, the final chapter of the first quest arc! This one's going to be a long chapter, but I hope everyone will like it. Anyways enjoy and I'll see you guys in the next one!**

* * *

 _With Samson, Fall 1965_

My dreams have often been confusing, even compared to other demigods. They're never vivid, more like a flashing impression of memories and feelings.

This one was different.

It's what you'd consider normal, which makes it abnormal for me. I dream of the top of a cliff face late in the night.

The moon is high in the sky and bigger than I ever thought it could be. The grass sways in the night breeze and the gentle crashing of waves on an invisible shore somewhere permeate my hearing.

There's two silhouettes standing with their back turned to me, a man and a woman. I try and call out to them but no words leave my mouth, and my body doesn't respond when I try and move.

It's like I'm a camera fixed in place for a scene from a film, I'm just viewing and recording it.

I wonder who they are? What is their relevance to me, why is this important?

Nothing happens for a while, they just stand there, side by side, and view the massive moon over the ocean. Finally, one of them, the woman, speaks through the serenity of the night.

"Is it what you wanted? Was this how you expected this to end?"

The man doesn't answer for a moment, he humphs "Wanted, expected? No, far from it. Divinity is considered a desire. It's nirvana, enlightening, supposedly. So why am I so unhappy? I feel like I am cursed, not blessed."

She's quiet, likely thinking of what she should say, what _can_ she say? "What will you do now? My father has stricken your name by now, and he's unlikely to leave you in peace even after all these years."

He puts his hand behind his back and raises his head to the moon. "Hmm, there is someone I'd like to see. I knew his father, back then, he was my best friend. I'd like to meet his son, I've heard he's a remarkable man."

The woman tsks, "He's unstable, unpredictable. His temper is well known, he's wild and cruel."

The man just chuckles lightly. "So was I, if you remember, and yet here we are now. As friends? As family? I'm not too different than he is, I say if you gave him a chance you'd come to appreciate him more."

Everything is quiet again; the sounds of nature blow beautifully in the air. Then why do I feel morose? I don't know these two yet at the same time it feels like I do.

I have no investment, yet I also feel connected and surprisingly responsible. These two have hinted that they're gods, so what could I have done to cause a god depression? Why are they relevant?

The woman starts to talk again, "You know you can't go to him, it violates the ancient laws. If you're found the punishment would be severe. You could be imprisoned or even _killed_."

I can't see it, but I swear he's got a shit eating grin on his face. "Rules can be broken, there's no one enforcing it. There's only punishment after the case, but that's if you get caught. I won't. I'm invisible to them, basically nonexistent, forgotten. I have much more freedom than them, even you, auntie."

She starts to chuckle a little as well, "You've always been too smart for your own good, nephew. I hope you can find your peace with him."

The man shrugs his shoulders, "It should be fine, after all we practically share a name."

Everything starts turning dark, like a dimmer everything fades until all I can see is black.

Then I wake up.

* * *

Steven and myself have been driving the truck for a while now. Steven's at the wheel, and as I look out the window I see colored trees and empty fields pass by in a blur, we must be going pretty fast.

"Where are we now?" I ask after shaking myself awake from my bizarre dream.

"We just got out of Portland." He looks at the sun, it's around six at night guessing by its position in the darkening sky. "We've got about four more hours until we get to the light house."

Good, that's very good news. We've gotten lucky so far, and since we haven't stopped anywhere there's been no monster ambushes or evil demigods trying to run us through.

While this seems like good news for most, for me it makes me very nervous. Cacus is still out there somewhere and I have no idea how many monsters he controls.

We drove for a few more hours until something started flashing in the mirror.

"Shit!" Steven swore when he saw that it was a police cruiser flashing his lights behind us. He pulls us off to the side of the road and the officer does behind us as well.

Steven and I share a look nervously as we wait. Fuck! Both of us don't have a legal license and getting in trouble with the law makes demigod quests almost as difficult as the monsters do if we cause enough trouble.

I'm glad that I can manipulate the mist, but I'm worried about pissing off Hecate or if the officer happens to be clear sighted.

One of those situations could get us killed and the other might have us stuck in a jail cell. If we get jailed, then either Cacus or something else could raid the station and kill us when we're without our weapons!

Steven and I make a plan while we're waiting, he'll try and use the mist to get the officer to leave us be, and if that doesn't work then he'll take us to the patrol station where we'll need to try it on someone else or escape when there's fewer officers left in the night.

The slamming of a door cuts off our planning. We look back and see the officer making his way around to Steven's side of the truck.

Steven rolls the window down as the officer looks into the car, partially blinding us with his flashlight. He's got this rough look to him, like he's been through the ringer a few times. He's basically the embodiment of a stereotypical cop, I just hope we don't have the crappy luck people in movies do with officers like this.

His voice is tough when he talks, god I hope we don't get arrested, "Do you know why I pulled you over tonight?"

Steven is just polite in response, but I can tell he's nervous as his arms are shaking and his voice wavers slightly, "I uh -I don't know sir."

He hums, "I've got a report of a suspicious vehicle driving in the area." What? There's no one living anywhere near the highway and we've passed few people on the roads. Something is very suspicious here. I focus my powers on the officer and try to feel his emotions, but I can't get a good read. I can tell he has them, my empathy only works on humans, so I know he is one, but something is blocking his mind.

It's like there's a fog in his head, so you can only see just a little bit in front of yourself.

I nudge Steven's shoulder, he takes this as the signal to try and use the mist. Snapping his fingers the tell-tale sign of mist usage manifests in a burst of wind and a loud crack.

The officer seems unaffected and gives Steven a sharp, angered look.

"What are you snapping at boy!" Steven shrinks in his chair, has he had a bad experience with the police before? He's very afraid right now, I don't even need to use my powers to be able to tell.

"Uh, um…" By the gods why wasn't I the one driving? I can't pipe up, so Steven has to be the one who handles this, and so far he's blowing it!

I decide to try my luck, perhaps Steven's nervousness is messing with his mist usage.

I snap and just like Steven it seems to work, but the officer still remains unaffected. What the Hades? If he was clearsighted then there wouldn't be a crack and burst of air from the mist working. So what's happening?

Thinking about it something pops into my mind, he's been bewitched. My friend Mori -or Moroaica if you want to use her full name- the oldest Hecate camper told me that some monsters who can enthrall humans make them immune to mist manipulation.

Officer manly man is livid by now, "Alright, get out of the car!"

* * *

We got arrested. No sugar coating it, and now we're waiting in a jail cell while the officers have fun relaxing and hanging out.

There's only three of them that I can see, two guys and a girl and all human. They've all got that fog in their heads when I try and feel for their emotions. Whomever is controlling them must be fairly strong if the mist doesn't even make them flinch.

Steven is sitting on his cot, crying and mumbling things about reputation and disappointed parents.

I love my brother so much, but times like these makes me wish he wasn't such a cry baby in the mortal world. Seriously, he can yank a horse to the ground and slaughter giants like a true hero, but he's scared of the police and lets bullies take his stuff.

I move my attention back to the officers, maybe they'll be able to tell me about what monster is controlling them.

"God Linda, you should've heard how loud these kids can snap! I swear it was like they lit fire crackers or something in their hands."

Linda, the lady officer, starts laughing with the third one at the guy who arrested us. "Snapping? Why the hell were they snapping at you? Were you thinking so hard about your vacation that they had to snap at you to do you your job?"

He rolls his eyes and leans back in his chair as his friends start laughing at him. I tilt my head to the side, so far they just seem like regular mortals, but they have to be enchanted or something. There's no way they're resistant to the mist otherwise.

I clear my throat to get their attention, but they ignore me. A frown mars my face now, rude.

How am I going to get them talk about… whomever has taken over this station? Well, I've heard the simplest answer is often right and I'm already in a cell, so it won't hurt to just ask.

"Hey, so whom is your master or mistress? Do they have a name?" Their chatter dies instantly and their heads snap to me at the same time, their eyes glowing an angry red.

In unison they all start speaking, "Our mistress is wise and powerful. She will return shortly and devour your supple flesh; your blood shall sustain her, and she will reward us. Children of the Wisdom Goddess have excellent flavor."

Steven has stopped crying by now and just like me his mouth is wide open. Holy SHIT these guys are fucked up.

I gulp and sit back on the cot next to Steven. The -cultists? – police officers all went back to their lounging like they weren't just possessed by monsters from Tartarus or something.

I turn to Steven, "So… what do you think about,-" I point over my shoulder back at the officers. "-them?"

He almost seems at a loss for words, but his eyes widen in realization at something. "I think they're thralls to a lamia! I've read thralls often have red eyes and lure victims to the nest of their mistress."

A lamia? Ah shit, cannibalistic vampire serpent women who also seduce young men -try saying that five times fast. This one must also be a sorceress of some kind if she can over write the mist.

"What should we do, then? Fighting a sorceress would be dangerous, maybe even more than we can handle."

Steven curls his fist under his chin in thought, "I've got the enchanted rope in my bag they confiscated. If we're forced to fight her than I can lasso them with it, that'll take away her biggest advantage. We could kill her fairly easy after that."

So, we have a plan for the lamia, that's one part ready. Now we have to get out of this cell, I can see the keys on one of the empty desks but they're well out of reach.

I can grab them with my powers, but it would mean nothing to unlock the cell door in front of all the brainwashed cops who may or may not have abilities of their own. So instead we just wait, if some of them leave Steven and me should be able to overpower them.

Sure enough the two male officers get up start to leave, I hear them mention picking someone special up as they do.

Looks like we're on a time limit to grab our stuff and get out of here. The lady officer has her back to us as she looks over some paperwork on her desk, perfect. I reach out with my powers and will the keys to levitate over to me slowly.

The keys hover closer and closer to me, it takes all my focus to keep them from clinking against each other. After a moment of concentrating I grab them when they're finally in reach, breathing a quiet sigh of relief.

Suddenly something grabs my arm and yanks me hard against the bars from the other side. It's the lady officer! She glowers at me from outside the cell, her eyes shining an evil red as she tightens her grip on my wrist.

Ah gods! It feels like my wrist is going to snap! Steven rushes forward quickly before she can and grabs a fistful of hair and slams her face hard into the bars.

I'm thankful for his brute strength as she's knocked out instantly and her grip is released on my wrist. I unlock the door and we quickly shuffle out; Steven drags her into the cell and locks her in, taking her gun and her set of keys from her beforehand.

We race through the station searching for their confiscated items room. The station is very small, so we find it quickly. Grabbing our bags and rearming ourselves, we make our way back to the office/holding room, Steven grabbing a set of keys labelled three on the way.

When we pass by the cell we see it's completely empty! The door looks like it was forced open and the lock is completely destroyed, springs and gears littering the floor, how did we not hear this?

We pull out our weapons start running towards the entrance. As I am I feel something yank me off my feet and throw be back hard enough that I slam into the wall behind me.

Something grabs my throat and lifts me straight into the air. My eyes bulge out when they start choking me. I feel my neck strain under the grip, but the pressure is released and I fall onto the floor, landing on my arms and knees.

I look up after coughing hard and stare straight into the dead eyes of the female police officer. Blood is pooling around her on the floor and some of it tickles around my fingers.

I'm frozen for a moment, I -I haven't seen a body in a long time. I swear her face flashes into that of my fathers for a moment, but I shake my head and stand back up.

Steven is frozen staring down at the woman's corpse, his knuckles turning white from how hard he's gripping his bloodied sword. I step around the body and start dragging him away, as cruel as this is we can't waste time feeling bad, if we stay too long we're going to die.

Steven wakes up from his petrified state and starts running with me to the door again. Before we reach it the door swings open and three figures walk in.

I recognize two of them as the male officers from before, but the other one is someone new. She's a beautiful woman in a flowing sundress. Her hair is braided in an elaborate weave and she's wearing large sunglasses and a sun hat so large that it's almost comical.

The two men snarl in anger at her sides but don't otherwise react. The woman, however, remains neutral. Her hand is on her purse and I note her nails are sharp and elongated, almost like spear points.

I swear something is glowing behind her dark sunglasses, but I turn my eyes away, I've hear rumors of seductresses being able to influence your mind via eye contact.

I pull my sword and my dagger from their sheaths and prepare myself, Steven stands next to me and does the same.

The men tense and prepare to charge, but the woman raises her hand and they relax, but their eyes still glow red in fury.

"Hello! Oh, I'm sorry for this mess!" Her voice is like honey, but I can tell it's false. No one has a voice so sweet in a situation like this. "I do hope we can all relax, it's the least you could do after killing Linda here. Oh, she was such a sweetie!"

She cries a few crocodile tears into her hands, but Steven and me still stay on guard. This has to be the lamia, no one else fits the bill so perfectly!

She huffs and looks back up, not a single spot of wetness on her cheeks. "Fine, we'll play it that way!" She snaps at us. "You demigods always have to ruin things for us monsters! We're only trying to survive too you know!"

We're unmoved, we can't let her get in our heads, that's where the lamia's specialty and advantages are.

She looks over at us, I can tell her eyes would be condescending if she didn't have those stupid glasses on. A mix of a snarl and a hiss escapes her lips, "Quite rude. At least I'll deign to tell you my name before you die! I am Lamia, lover of Zeus, cower and behold halflings!"

"Lamia? As in the queen of Libya?"

She grins, her teeth are sharp and pointed like needles, "So you've done your homework! Yes I am her, the first Lamia and queen of the Laestrygonians, you've angered me quite a bit when you slayed my subjects and hurt my friend Cacus!"

Shit, she's not just a lamia, she's THE Lamia! That and she's acquainted with Cacus, we can't let her live now. If she does she could alert Cacus and tell him where we are!

Her body starts to stretch and her bones creak grotesquely, her legs morph in a long serpent's tail and she tears her clothing and accessories off, revealing a beautiful and very nude upper woman's body.

Many myth's place Lamia as seducers, but Steven and myself steel our emotions, her charm won't affect us in the fight if we don't allow it.

She hisses, and two green balls of fire appear in her hand. Before she can launch them Steven pulls the rope from his bag, it's still tied in a lasso from before, and throws it at Lamia, trapping her as it tightens and presses her arms to her sides.

The fire disappears, and she starts screaming and hissing, trying to free herself from the rope. The two officers charge me, they run at an incredible speed but I still dodge, slicing deep into the one's side with dagger as he lunges at me.

The one I hit screams as his wound starts smoking like it's burning. It seems like Lamia replaced their blood with hers, giving them a weakness to silver like a Lycan's!

The other one starts swiping at me with his baton. I maneuver back and he tries an overhead swing to crack my skull open, I parry it with my sword and run him through the belly with my dagger. He screams and swipes me with his open arm, throwing me into and over a desk.

I groan and try to stand but something grabs me from my back pack and throw me straight in the where I hit the ceiling hard before crashing back down.

He kicks me hard in the ribs and I go flying once again into the wall, cracking the plaster on impact. I stand quickly before my eyes go wide and duck a punch aimed straight for my face.

I roll around him, slashing his leg with my sword but not quite cutting all the way through, and face him again from behind.

He growls in pain and pulls his arm free from the wall and starts walking towards me, ignoring what must be huge pain his leg. Dear gods these thralls are ridiculous!

I look to the right and duck as a chair is thrown at me. The other guy has gotten back up but he's clutching his side, seemingly holding his own organs inside his body.

They both advance on me from the front and the right, thinking quickly I throw my dagger and it pierces the chest of the one to the right. He gurgles in surprise as wretched dark, nearly black blood pools out of his mouth as he drops to the floor.

I immediately react and use my sword to parry a blow from the remaining officer, he starts flailing his baton at me and I have to keep parrying and moving back, he's too strong and a good hit could kill me.

He then overextends his swing and I deliver a powerful kick straight into the cut I gave him on his leg. I nearly hurl when I hear the bone crack and crunch like a tree branch as he falls screaming on the floor, blood squirts out and splashes my silver jacket as he starts screaming in agony.

I steel my heart and thrust my sword into his chest, he inhales sharply for a moment and looks with fear into my eyes. As I look into his I see the red fade away to reveal deep blue _human_ eyes full of life before they dim and become hollow.

I start crying when I realize for that moment he was human again, and now he's dead and it's my fault.

Lamia screams and slams her tail into my side and throws me into the wall again, knocking the air from my lungs. I stand on shaky feet as she slams her body into me with enough force to push us through the wall and into a room on the other side.

I'm glad it was just a plaster wall and nothing harder, but I find it hard to breathe as she knocked the air out of me again. Before I could rise and recollect myself she wrapped her serpentine half around me like a snake and started squeezing.

Her arms were still tied with the rope or she would've torn my throat out with them, so decided that she'd just bite it out instead.

She grins and leans down over me, licking her gross forked tongue over my neck. Gods I want to throw up!

She opens her jaws far wider than a human could and prepares to latch them around my neck. Before she can Steven appears in the hole and quickly slashes his sword, cutting off her head in one smooth motion.

Her body turns into golden dust and I find myself able to breathe again. I lay on the floor for a moment as I regain control of my lungs again.

Steven helps me rise to my feet and passes me a bit of ambrosia which I gobble up greedily. Coming back out the hole and looking into the room I finally appreciate fully what just happened.

We killed three people. Humans with families and loved ones just like us. A knot forms in my stomach as I pull my dagger from the chest of the dead man, I almost vomit as I feel it glide out and shimmer with fresh blood.

I try my best to clean it off before sliding it into the sheath and leaving out the front door with Steven. He throws a fire grenade into the building and it quickly lights on fire, at least this way everyone will think the officers died in a fire and weren't brutally murdered by two teens.

We're both quiet as we pile into a cruiser labelled three and pull into the night and back onto the highway.

The patrol station wasn't too far away so we only had to drive half an hour to reach the light house. Not a word passed in the car the whole time. It's just, what could we say? We've killed monsters, but those weren't monsters, those were cursed humans. Maybe later we can talk about it, but for now we have to be silent, the memory is too fresh.

* * *

Pulling the car to the side of the road, Steven and I exit and walk towards the entrance of the lighthouse. Its brilliant beam is shining out over the bay right now, I wonder who lights it? Prometheus is imprisoned up top, so they can't be any mortal.

Perhaps it's been enchanted to light itself? I hope so, I can't stand to have another confrontation right now.

Pushing the aging door open Steven and I enter and take in the sights. It's very neat and clean inside, perhaps someone does live here.

We don't see anyone, so we quickly make our way to the very top of the light house. Being so high up is beautiful, we take a second to appreciate the beauty of the bay as the light passes over our heads and far into the distance.

Steven and I share a look and so much passes between us in that silent moment. Pain, joy, fury, worry so many emotions race through us but we steel our courage. It's time to finish this.

Finishing our trek, we enter the top and sure enough Prometheus is there chained to a large rock. His pants are torn, and he has no shirt.

His eyes watch us intently as we pool inside. His face is scarred as well as his chest, but he seems comfortable almost. I guess thousands of years in the same position numbs you to discomfort.

"Ah, Samuel. I suppose you're here to free me for Kronos now." Uh, what? His voice is smooth and classy, like he's a wealthy aristocrat or something.

"Um, my name isn't Samuel, sir." He makes a face, "Ah dammit! Fifty years off it seems. You must be here for something else then, my liver I assume?"

He certainly earns the title of Titan of Forethought, I wonder how long ago he predicted our arrival? I don't give it much though as I pull the surgical tools I packed and get to work harvesting a Titan's organ.

Prometheus keeps a surprisingly neutral face as I start cutting into him.

"They must be quite the instruments if you need so much divine essence to create them." I raise an eyebrow at him, but he keeps his face even as I continue.

"This won't end well, you know? It's not going to be what you want in the end, and you'll suffer quite a bit as consequence."

I keep ignoring him. "You do know it was your mother back then, right? I've met Athena once, she's a clever girl, almost as much as I am."

I refuse to acknowledge, Prometheus has an amazing ability to convince someone of anything if they listen long enough. I can't let him manipulate me.

"She's manipulating you. I know you know this, it's written all over you." He does a rolling gesture with his chained hand. "What does she gain from this I wonder? Will she be more powerful, or just have more control up on that accursed mountain?"

I stop for a moment, why is mother so invested? I shake my head and keep my mind clear, and just for good measure I start making rough cuts and movements inside of Prometheus.

He twitches in pain and gives me a sharp glare but keeps his mouth shut tight as I pull his liver free from his side.

As Steven and I leave with his organ, Prometheus calls out one last time, "Think about things, Sam! Don't be the sheep she wants you to be!"

We're back outside on the lawn of the lighthouse. It's nearly pitch black save for the lighthouse.

"What are you going to do with this?" Steven motions to the liver I placed on a rock for a moment as I dig through my pack.

"To complete the first tool, or Oculus as I call it, I need to liquify the liver and dip them in it, where they'll absorb the essence and become fully empowered."

Steven raises his eyebrow at my explanation but stays quite as I set up the small portable pot and burner I packed.

Lighting a small flame of Greek fire in the burner under the pot, I place the liver and a few other potions in with it. It doesn't take long before everything turns into a beautiful glowing viscous liquid, it almost looks like liquid gold, but I know this stew and its purpose are far more valuable.

I pull a carefully wrapped package from my bag and unfold it, revealing a pair of circle frame glasses with clear lenses.

Dropping them into the godly soup I move Steven and myself behind a large rock and tell him to duck.

After a moment brilliant light races over the rock and lights up the night like it's daytime for a second before everything goes dark again.

I jump over the rock and race to the now destroyed pot, Steven right behind me. My eye catches as I see the fruit of my labor finally revealed. Floating about a foot of the grass is a beautiful pair of glowing golden glasses.

The clear lenses have been dyed yellow and the metal frame shines and shimmers like it were made from solid light before dimming significantly until it resembles reflective golden metal.

I hear Prometheus shouting 'good job' in the light house but I ignore him once again. This is my victory and I won't let anything ruin this.

Grabbing the glasses, I feel the power surging within them, but to me it feels comfortable. Heck, I feel _complete_ just holding them, they recognize me as their master.

As much as I would like to use these, by themselves without their yet to be complete sister pieces these would more curse the user than empower them.

I start wrapping them up again when Steven breaks from his trance and asks, "What do these do? What's their significance?"

Now that, that's an excellent question. "In the broadest of terms, you can metaphysically see _truth_."

"Truth?" He's clearly confused, not that I blame him, these are complex things with an amazing use.

"Yes, truth. Think of it this way, if someone is lying you would know. If something was being hidden, you would know. These reveal _anything_ that's hidden from vision. Be it godly or mundane, it can see through all barriers."

Steven's eyes widen at the reveal, it seems he finally appreciates what these can be used for. The draw back to these is that, well, there's no protection for you from what you might see. They can only reveal, not keep your mind sane or healthy from what you might see, it's why the rest of the pieces are so valuable and crucial.

* * *

Steven and I are driving back down the highway and towards Athenos Manor, we're still half a day's drive away at least but we want to be back as soon as possible.

As we are we notice lights off in the distance, and as we get closer I see that in the field to our right is a massive gathering of people, tents, campers and surprisingly centaurs.

We pull over and decide to check it out, for some reason I felt a pull of some kind. Something was beckoning me over, but it felt pleasant. I felt at peace when it brushed my mind, and all the feeling of _good_ it brought with calmed my frazzled nerves from the past few hours.

Making our way through the crowd various scents and sights passed around. I smelt various things like marijuana, alcohol and this odd sweaty mixture.

I'm not sure how, but the _something_ guided me expertly towards it through the crowds. Steven was right behind me, as we also took in the odd sights.

Hundreds of people, all of them wearing strange and colorful flowing clothes, danced or relaxed around us. Thinking back to Max I remember that these people we called hippies. I'm glad that I kept the handkerchief he gave me as it has his address and phone number written on it.

I only knew him for about hour, but I guess I'm attached. I'm interested in meeting him again, he's a nice person and there's _something_ about him that makes me want to be around him.

Huh, my chest feels a little weird.

Anyways after navigating the hippie camp I finally find the body of the presence that drew us here.

It was a beautiful woman with dark curly hair and eyes green like the healthiest grass. She was wearing a beautiful batik dress with designs so intricate and gorgeous that it has to be of godly origin, no mortal, demigod or other, could create something so beautiful.

When she saw us approach she beamed us a smile so beautiful and radiant I felt like I was going to melt. She motioned to two open chairs and we sat down across from her. The group she was with dispersed as we sat down, leaving Steven, the woman and myself in a place of relative privacy.

Her voice was an angel when she spoke, "Peace, my grandchildren. I saw you visiting my nephew in the light house."

Nephew? Grandchildren? No way, is she?

"I am Rhea and like, I wanted to meet with you before you passed by." She leans over and pulls us into a hug. Oh, my gods this is the best feeling I've ever had. I've never felt so peaceful or calm before.

She pulls away, "How was my nephew? I don't want to dim the joy, but I heard he's been in trouble for like, a long time."

She frowns slightly as she remembers Prometheus's fate. Everything feels cold now suddenly, like all happiness has been sucked from the world.

Rhea's eyes widen and suddenly she has her smile back. I breathe again -when did I stop? -and the world feels right again.

"I can't say he's very happy where he is, not that I blame him. Being tied to a rock for all of human civilization probably really sucks."

"Yeah, it probably is a bummer." Suddenly Rhea's breath hitches for a moment and her eyes are filled with concern. This passes quickly though, and she stands and offers us her hands. I notice strange patterns imprinted on her skin; I believe they're called henna, Indian temporary tattoos.

Taking her hands, she leads us into a tent behind her. This must be hers since it is far larger on the inside than it seems on the outside. The inside is about the size of an entire house. Inside there's all kinds of things ranging from a kitchen and furniture to wardrobes and bookshelves full of books of every kind.

She takes our bloody jackets and has us sit down in two barber chairs she has set up in front of a huge mirror.

"Sit down here, please. I'll be back soon, I would like to give you something before you left." She ducks through another flap with the jackets and disappears somewhere, leaving us to our thoughts in front of a massive mirror.

As i wait, start looking at my reflection through the mirror; my hair is fairly long, almost to my shoulders, -but it's extremely messy- and it's a dark shade of black. I look at my eyes and see their bright nearly reflective gray coloring staring back at me.

I've never taken the time before to appreciate my features, but sitting by this mirror I feel comfortable I suppose.

My face is slender, almost feminine as the Ares campers liked to point out, and my build is about so too. I'm slender with weaker definition and not overly tall, likely five foot eight if I were to guess.

I usually avoided mirrors since they always were a reminder of what I looked like or, as the Aphrodite cabin liked to tell me, what I shouldn't look like as a man. I never told anyone, but I've never been confidant in my looks, I suppose that's why I never had a girlfriend or even kissed one before.

However, sitting in front of this mirror, I feel content. I feel like the person reflected in the mirror is fine as they are.

Huh, when did Rhea come back? She's standing beside me in the mirror, her warm smile making me feel at ease and strangely happy.

She ruffles my frazzled hair and chuckles as she pulls out an object she was hiding behind her back and holds it in the mirror. A brush.

* * *

Rhea spent a short time fixing us up again, she styled my longer hair into a wavy, almost airy look. It almost reminds me of a grassy field. When she gave us our jackets I noted that embraided into the fabric are a variety of beautiful flowers.

When I touched them, I was surprised to feel that they were real.

"Do you like them? Different kinds will grow from the jacket to replace the ones that fall out. The different kinds have special effects, here I'll show you."

Rhea plucks a pretty red flower and tosses it a fair distance away from us. Steven and I flinched hard when the flower hit the ground and it exploded like a grenade!

Rhea cackles behind us sheer joy and I just can't help doing so too. She pulls us into a final hug and whispers something that leaves a bad feeling in my gut. "I'm sorry for this, please forgive me."

Then the world blinks and it feels like my body is being stretched, smashed and tugged all at the same time.

When everything returns to normal I find myself looking at a large house burning fiercely as violent flames dance from the wood.

It takes me a minute to realize that despite the carnage I recognize this place.

Athenos Manor.

I try and race into the fire, hoping desperately that my brothers are okay, but something pulls me back.

"Don't Samson! It's falling apart, you'll be crushed if you go in there!" Tears stream down my face as I go limp in Steven's grip.

They- they can't be gone, please don't let them be gone.

"HEY!" Someone's screaming, we look over and see Nefeli and some other dryads throwing buckets of water at the fire, trying to keep the fire from spreading to their trees.

Steven starts running towards them and I'm not far behind. The heat is almost unbearable, but I can tell it's not as bad as it could be, it looks like these jackets work well with the fire.

I remember Rhea mentioning the flowers growing on our jackets have special properties and I search through a couple and look for one that would be useful against fire. I pick a blue one and pray to Athena it's what I think it is.

I chuck the blue flower into the fire closest to the dryad's trees and watch as a massive sheet of water explodes from the fire, extinguishing most of the fire on the garden side as well as preventing the fire from spreading into the garden and towards the trees.

Before I can relax Nefeli runs over and grabs me by my jacket, "Samson, It's Joseph and William! A huge giant came by earlier and took them to junkyard you fought the drakon! You have to hurry!"

I was off immediately, Steven and I were sprinting faster than we've ever before, the determination to save our brothers pushed our bodies beyond what we thought possible as we only had one thing in mind; We will save them.

* * *

The junkyard was a burning inferno when we got there. I'm sure if Dante were here he'd say it belonged to the deepest circle of hell, I'd be inclined to agree.

Cacus was waiting for us when we ran in, sitting leisurely on a pile of rubbage like it were a golden throne.

His voice boomed across the junkyard, easily overpowering the hiss of the angry hellfire around us. "Welcome, demigods!" He dons a toothy grin, "I've been wondering when you'd show up! Here I was thinking I'd need a messenger when you just come to me before I could find one!"

I don't care for his shit right now. I grit my teeth and scream out, "Cut the shit Cacus! Where's our brothers!"

He just releases a deep bellowing laugh. "I only snagged the one, got no clue where the old fucker went after I smacked him around, probably dead!"

Steven tenses and pulls his sword out, knuckles turning white from how hard he's gripping it. I pull out my dagger and sword and tense my muscles, preparing for the coming fight.

Cacus rises from his throne of trash and lifts a ratty cage in his fist, William is in there! He chucks the cage at us and we jump to the sides as we roll past.

Steven is already at the cage when it stopped rolling, prying the door open with his bare hands and ignoring the sheer heat of the door as his hands steam and smoke.

Before I could help Steven tears it free and throws it behind him, grabbing William and freeing him from the hot cage.

He's barley breathing when I check up on and his body is covered in burns and bruises. My hands are shaking when I try and wake him, I want to force feed him ambrosia, but I have to stop myself. William has already had too much in the past few days, anymore and he'll die in pain.

William slowly opens his eyes and I nearly cry out in joy before horror overtakes me. His eyes are so dim, there's almost no life in them.

Steven and I kneel at his side and hold him on our arms, William is shaking as we hold him like he was left in a freezer without a coat. His mouth opens and closes like he's trying to speak but only choked breaths come out.

We shush him and hold him closer, I whisper kind words and apologies as his breathing shallows. I can feel him smile for a moment and bring one hand to each of our cheeks before his breathing finally ceases and his arms drop, and he goes limp in our arms.

We're just frozen as we hold our now dead brother in our arms. I'm not sure how to react so just keep holding him, I can't feel much until tears stream down my face and it suddenly hit's me.

My brother is dead. He's dead, he's dead, HE'S DEAD!

Ugly sobs pass between me and Steven as we cradle William in our arms.

The ground shakes as massive footsteps come towards us and I realize who's responsible for this. Fury overtakes me, and I roar in anger and stand to face Cacus once again, Steven rising with me as we ready to strike down our nemesis.

Cacus readies a massive spear to crush us but we took off faster than we could raise it. We rushed to his legs, each of us going for one, and started slashing at his armored ankles.

He roars as our swords pierce his armor and bite deep into flesh. I quickly roll away and barely dodge the kick he sent towards me, the wind from his kick was strong enough to throw me far back.

I land on my back hard from the wind and my eyes go wide as I rise to my feet and jump away from the spear Cacus drove several feet in the ground where I just was. In a show of speed and strength, he drags the spear through the ground and towards me, forcing me to dodge again as the spear sheers the air in front of me like a vertical guillotine.

He roars in pain and falls to a knee, shaking the ground as he impacts and nearly knocking me off my feet. I look and see Steven stabbing his sword straight into his ankle handle deep.

Cacus tries to swat Steven away with his free hand, and I take this is an opportunity for a counter attack. I race forward and quickly jump up and slice into his unarmored jugular. Blood gushes out as he gurgles and bring his arm back to swat me away. I try and dodge back but he knicks me with his hand, sending me spinning through the air and slamming hard into the dirt.

My body aches as I try and stand, I hear the distant sound of Cacus roaring and smashing through piles of scrap metal and refuse. I catch my breath finally and start racing towards the giant who has moved further into the junkyard chasing after Steven.

Cacus is wildly smashing things around trying to hit Steven, so I run up behind him and drive my sword straight into his ankle like Steven had earlier. He roars and nearly falls over, but keeps his balance using his spear like a cane.

Steven quickly runs forward to Cacus's feet and brings his sword down straight through the exposed big toe of his right foot, slicing all the way through and removing it entirely.

He roars so loudly in agony I have to cover my ears else they might bleed and collapses on his knee. Steven runs back around and meets up with me behind Cacus.

The giant growls and snaps his head to face us and quickly releases a jet of white hot flame. We cry in shock as the flames pass over us.

When they pass I open my eyes and realize that Steven and I are completely unharmed the fire. Cacus's face is shocked and his jaw hangs open as he stares at us in complete disbelief. Steven giggles a little as he realizes the monsters' greatest power has no effect over us.

Cacus slams his fist hard into the ground and the shockwave throws us far back, Steven slamming into a pile of plastic bags and I crash through the top of a pile of magazines.

When I look up instead of seeing an over twenty-foot monster I see a much smaller man, Cacus as I focus on him. I'm completely shocked when I see that he shrunk down to an eight-foot version of himself.

Cacus rises from his kneeling, his faces full of fury and his mouth almost foaming. I pull myself free from my trash and race over to him, delivering a flurry off slashes and parrying strikes from my weapons. He expertly deflects my blows before throwing my arms out with a hard swipe and drives his spear straight into the center of my chest.

Thankfully the jacket Artemis gifted me is just as sturdy as she said, so instead of being stabbed the spear instead jabbed me hard and knocked me off my feet and fly twenty feet away.

My chest aches from the blow and I'm sure I'll have a nasty bruise from it.

It takes a moment to rise to my feet again, my legs shake from the exhaustion of running here but I ignore and run back over to Steven who is now engaging Cacus solo.

I quickly bull rush Cacus and start flurrying my blades into his less protected guard. In a show of skill Cacus not only deflects Steven's attacks as well as mine, but also launches a few attacks of his own that forces us to change from attacking to guarding then back to attacking again.

We exchange blows back and forth for a moment before Cacus swiftly launches a kick into my midriff and launches me back into a steel beam, knocking the air from me as I collapse to the ground.

I gasp for air as I hold my middle, gods it was hard but I managed to rise to my feet again. I try to continue forward but the pain flares sharply and I collapse to my feet again.

By now sweat is pouring down my face as the pain becomes unbearable. I reach around and pull my pack off my back. I dig through it and pull out my bag of ambrosia and take a bigger bite from it than I likely should have.

I feel the sweet relief of its magic work through my body and I rise to my feet, my body protests fiercely but I push through now that the pain has faded away.

As I look out at the fight I see Cacus had pushed Steven further back away from where I was kicked to. I start sprinting as fast as I can when I see Steven is desperately trying to hold out against Cacus as he starts over powering him with fast and powerful blows.

Suddenly the giant smacks his spear straight onto Steven's wrist, the loud crack I hear definitely doesn't come from a broken handle shaft. My stomach twists in a knot as Cacus slaps Steven hard across the face with his spear, Steven's body jerks sharply as he's tossed far to side.

I see red and suddenly instead of being thirty feet away I blinked and found myself burying my sword straight through Cacus's armor, piercing through his shoulder blade and out of his chest.

He screams and tries to whip me with his spear on a back swing. I duck under his swing and drive my dagger straight into his unprotected armpit. He tries to bash me with his other arm, I rip my dagger free and quickly slash his fist as he brings it clumsily around, taking most of his fingers off as I deflect it away.

I duck again as he tries to drive his spear into my head, as he brings his spear down I angle the dagger up and bring it straight into his wrist, slicing through the flesh and bone like it were warm butter.

His screams fill my ears, but I don't let up. I slice into his calves, dropping him to his knees where I bring my blade across his eyes, blinding him. His shrieks and wails race through my ears, I don't care. Standing over his weakened form I bring my blade straight down the center of his skull cutting so far I even split his jaw.

His body twitches for half a second before he turns into a golden statue of dust before falling into a pile of dust at feet. After he dies an incredible feeling of nausea passes over me and I crash onto my hands and feet.

I crawl over to Steven like a wounded dog and sit by his side. Oh gods, his neck is at the wrong angle. Fuckfuckfuckfuck! That's not right, his breathing is labored and shallow just like…. No please no I can't lose both.

My eyes are puffy in tears, so much that I almost can't even see. I feel something on my cheek, Steven's resting his hand on it, his eyes are tearing up and sobs start passing my lips.

He pulls me closer and whispers words that I wish were true, his voice is weak and croaking. "It's not your fault."

Then his hand drops, and I know then that he's dead. His last words dance around in my head as I wail in agony over my brother's corpse.

His words were comforting but, in my hysteria, I just couldn't see it that way.

I got my brothers killed. So I wail long into the night.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/n: Hey All! Back again with another chapter, shout out to my friend Thetruehero for helping me with some jokes for this chapter; check their stuff out! Any who this chapter switches back to a new perspective, I'll do this every so often when the time is right, enjoy! Also, one quick mention; I'm going with a timeline that Leo came back with Calypso much sooner than he did.**

* * *

 _With Annabeth, Spring 2011_

The more I read from this journal the more I realize just how crazy my brother Samson really was. I don't mean it in a mental illness way, more along the lines of weird things happened to him; seriously he incited a riot on accident. Accident!

Gods then apparently, he was part of a gang war with the Hermes and Ares cabins, how in the world Chiron let that happen I don't know. Some campers even died during that, what the Hades?

It's been a few days since seaweed brain pulled the chest from the attic and I've been pooling through some of the stuff in the meantime. For whatever reason I can't open up the giant leather book I found, I talked with a few of the Hecate campers and they told me it was heavily enchanted. I was surprised when Lou Ellen mentioned the enchantments were too powerful for her to remove them.

Whomever made it must have some enticing secrets stored away if they had it _that_ enchanted for protection! I'll have to ask mom for advice or a clue if I see her again soon.

As I read through his journal, more and more mysteries begin to pop up. At first he mentions befriending 'The Huntress' which opens up a whole can of worms just by itself.

Who is 'The Huntress'? Why is it given like a title of power? He must mean the hunters, but the only person with an authority position among them is Artemis and her lieutenant. Could he be referring to Zoe? I doubt it, she doesn't seem like the kind of person based on what Percy told me about her.

Could it be Artemis then? Even though she has a bias, Artemis is still a goddess and heroes have earned her favor in the past. It's almost a law for a god to reward a demigod for performing some action in their name.

But friends? Is it possible for Artemis to even befriend a demigod, a male one no less? If so, then It explains the silver kopis dagger I found in the trunk. She must've given it to him to keep as a reward for something.

There's one other thing that keeps me perplexed as I read through the journal.

Oculus, Juggernaut, Ram. The three of them are referred to as the Penumbra Triumvirate throughout the journal.

The biggest question is what are they? Their functions aren't explained, just names, not much other detailing. All I know is that they are a mechanism of some kind, three things that are a piece of something bigger.

The mystery is driving me crazy! Samson was working on something amazing, but then where is the legacy? How come we never hear about demigods like this! I hope there is a history or something of important demigods written somewhere.

Thinking about it, how many demigods have been forgotten? Sure, I helped the gods way more than a fair bit along with so many others, but is that it? Is the legacy of a hero to be forgotten even by immortals?

I'm starting to feel a bit more sullen now, is that all our sacrifice will be? I shake my head and clear my thoughts, thinking like that lead Luke down a very dark path I don't want to follow.

I'm outside of the Athena cabin right now, the sun is shining high in the afternoon and the cool spring breeze clears my nerves. It's truly beautiful right now. The trunk is resting next me, I had a clear schedule today so it was the perfect time to properly explore its contents.

Percy was busy training some of the younger campers with their swordsmanship and my siblings are busy with their days so I'm here alone. It's not unpleasant, though, sometimes being alone is nice

I was relaxing in the sunlight when I saw Leo coming towards me from down the path.

He waves over at me with a big grin on his face, "Hey, Annabeth! Still picking through that old junk?"

I roll my eyes and smile a little, it's hard to hate Leo. "It's not junk! This here is knowledge, wisdom of the past and all that!"

He walks over and I can tell he want's to look through the trunk I motion to it and he grins at me, then begins to rummages through the trunk. After a moment of looking he pulls out a pair of golden circle frame sunglasses.

"Oh hey! These are kinda cool!" He gives me an excited smile, "Can I keep them?"

I shrug my shoulders, "I don't see a reason not to. Just be careful, those belonged to my brother!"

He gives me some quick thanks and puts them on and runs off towards the Hephaestus cabin. I'm happy for Leo, now that he and Calypso are boyfriend and girlfriend his mood has improved drastically. They'll be good for each other, or so I hope at least, she's a former Titaness and they have much different morals than mortals.

I'd hate to have to kill her if she hurt Leo's feelings.

Oh gods I'm turning into a crazy mother, and I'm only 17!

I blush a little in embarrassment at my thoughts and pull out the silver kopis. I unsheathe it and begin to inspect the design imbedded along the spine. They're beautiful and intricate, almost like classical line-art.

I stand and give it a few practice swings, it's an amazingly well-balanced weapon and the weight is perfectly comfortable as it glides through the air.

I sheathe it and attach it to my belt, it's a good replacement for the dagger Luke gave me a decade ago. I'm frowning now, my old dagger was one of the last meaningful connections I had with Luke.

I sigh and wipe my eyes, I'll miss my old one, but this new dagger is like a fresh start. For me the silver one is a chance to develop new attachments and memories.

…I hope he's happy wherever he is.

I put everything away and continue with my day, hopefully a nice day with Percy will cheer me up.

It was early next morning when I heard pounding on the cabin door. I open the door, groggily and bleary eyed, and I'm instantly bombarded with a string of words from a frantic Calypso.

I put my hands on her shoulders to get her attention and hopefully calm her down, "Hey, hey, hey! Calm down and breathe. Tell me what happened." I keep my voice calm and soothing and she slows her breathing down and gathers her composure again.

I can hear my siblings plopping from their bunks behind me, so I raise a hand and motion them to stay inside. I close the door and stand outside with Calypso.

Her voice is shaking, and tears are streaming from her eyes. "Annabeth, it's Leo! Him and the other Hephaestus campers, they've been cursed!

* * *

I meet with Chiron and a few of the other councilors outside of cabin 9. Calypso quickly explains that earlier in the morning they were messing around with something Leo found when a blinding light filled the cabin.

She continues saying that after it disappeared they were all on the floor raving in madness!

We look over to Mr. D, who arrived not too long ago, and he holds his hands in the air.

"I didn't do it. Well, not this time." We all give him a look of disbelief but he waves us off and summons a soda to his hand.

I open the heavy steel door and we all pool inside the cabin. We hear shrieking and shouting and we all quickly race to the workshop, once in there the fate of the cabin is revealed as the campers cry out in mania.

"HE SPEAKS WILD INTO THE NIGHT!"

"THE NEW STARWARS MOVIES ARE GOING TO BE DISAPPOINTING!"

"HE'LL NEVER FIND THE ONE PIECE!"

"IT IS A MISTAKE TO FANCY THAT HORROR IS ASSOCIATED INEXTRICABLY WITH DARKNESS, SILENCE, AND SOLITUDE!"

"PERLIA IS AN UNDERWRITTEN AND APPRECIATED SHIP!"

By the gods they are insane!

Mr. D finally catches up with us, he walked instead of running, and looks over the moaning and raving Hephaestus campers.

He grimaces in disgust, "Geez, they really did themselves in with this." He walks over and pries something free from Leo's grip.

He turns the item in his hand a few times and seems to appreciate whatever it is for a few moments.

"Mr. D?" Inquires Chiron, curious about the item. "What is it that you have found?"

Mr. D ignores him and walks over to me. He opens my hand and places the item on it.

"You'll be needing this, Annabelle." He walks past me and starts back towards the entrance. "I'm going back the Big House, you can figure this out easy enough."

Will and Lou Ellen quickly rush past Mr. D and start checking up on the campers, both using their powers to try and identify the cause of the curse. The rest of the councilors and I share a look at each other for a moment before Chiron speaks up, "Mr. Solace? Mrs. Blackstone? Have you learned anything?"

Lou Ellen starts first, "I've never seen anything like this, whatever magic has done this left no trace. It's almost like their minds were changed naturally and not purposefully altered."

Will comes next, "I don't think we can heal their minds, to me I see their brains as having been changed by experience. They weren't forced into this, more like they evolved to become this way quickly."

Chiron stays quiet and mulls over in his thoughts. We all look to him, hoping for an answer of some kind. He stays silent for a moment before coming to a decision. "Take them to the infirmary, make sure they are supervised at all times." He then looks to me, "Mrs. Chase, meet me in the big house after you ready yourself. The rest of you, make way back to your cabins! Prepare patrols and keep your vision keen."

He turns around in dramatic flair and makes his way back outside. A few councilors stay to move the campers while others leave back to their cabins.

I stand in place and look back at the thing Mr. D gave me, it's the glasses I gave Leo but there's something different about them now. I can feel a flow in them, a life-force almost. I flip them to their side and notice words engraved along the odd golden temples, they say _Oculus._

000

I meet up with Chiron in the war room after I got dressed and rearm myself. Percy and a few other councilors were there with us. Nico was nowhere to be found, much to Chiron's chagrin.

"Campers- " Chiron begins, "-we have an emergency. Earlier this morning all member of Cabin Nine cursed themselves with strange magic." He points at the glasses I placed on the table. "These bifocals here are key to something greater. I have discussed with Mr. D and he has deigned to share his wisdom with me."

He then looks to me, "We can reverse the effects with two sister pieces to this one. Mrs. Chase, I believe you have more insight into this?"

Okay, my turn. I step forward, "I've been reading through my brother's journal from the nineteen sixties, I believe he's the creator of these, at the very least he's connected with them."

Clarisse barks in, "So what? If he's not old and senile then he's dead! How's this supposed to help us now?"

I try and resist the urge to roll my eyes, but I just can't help myself. "Because, if we can find out more about him, we can find the other two pieces he wrote about. We have Oculus, now we need to find Ram and Juggernaut."

"So, Wise Girl, what are they then? I mean, Oculus – glasses, but what the Hades would the other two be?" Gods I love him, but he's _really_ about to embarrass me here!

"I- I don't know." I turn a little pink as Clarisse and a few others starts laughing.

Clarisse speaks again, "I've got an idea about the other two. Ram is a term Ares uses when talking about helmets. Juggernaut is another term for aegis, armor."

I've got to give it to Clarisse, she's not as dumb as I asuume. She must've had an idea about what I was thinking since she growls at me and looks like she's about to jump over the table and throttle me.

We all descend into arguing until Chiron stomps his hoof and we all settle, "Quiet down! Samson left camp a very long time ago, but that doesn't mean we'll need him now. Mrs. Chase, you were given these by Mr. D, I find it fair for you to lead this quest."

We all nod in agreement, the war with Gaea was only a few months ago and no one is jumping up for another quest, least of all Clarisse; she's leaving for college soon enough and Sherman's going to take her place.

With the meeting adjourned we all scattered to continue about our business. Percy, of course, invited himself as one of the members for this quest.

I wouldn't have it any other way.

* * *

Rachel's cave continues to become more and more cool every time I come here. The walls are covered in beautiful artwork and it's furnished with very comfortable looking giant throw pillows and sofas.

The massive 65-inch television and matching entertainment system is new, however.

"Percy, Annabeth! Hi!" Rachel, our resident red-headed Oracle calls out from her over-sized sofa.

She runs over and gives us a quick hug. "What'cha need? Did something happen out there?"

Percy turns to me, so I speak up first. "Yes actually, we're here to talk with the Oracle for a quest."

She nods, "I thought so, I heard all kinds of stuff going on outside!"

Rachel moves over to a stool she has situated off to the side and sits on it. She closes her eyes and suddenly the lights begin to dim as a green fog begins to form in the room.

Rachel, no the Oracle opens her eyes, they glow green and seem almost misty,

"Approach, children. I- " The Oracle is suddenly cut off but an insect flying into her throat, causing her to start coughing wildly! Percy and I stand there awkwardly as the Oracle tries to dislodge the insect she had accidentally eaten.

"Swallowed a bug! Oh, I hate that!" The Oracle spoke using Rachel's voice instead of the raspy one she usually has for prophecies. By the gods this day is getting weirder and weirder!

She finally hacks out the bug and adjusts herself back on the stool. "You shall –"she is still talking in Rachel's voice, but she clears her throat and then she's back to the regular raspy prophecy style voice.

" _You shall take three,_

 _Venture back to the wicked stone garden._

 _The lost one will be recovered, and the Child of the Dead shall find what has been sought._

 _With the help of the creator you will find one,_

 _In the golden gardens and under the golden tree._

 _From the old ones take heed, Restore the past to redeem the future._

 _Thank you for your offering, have a nice day!"_

Rachel Slumps forward and Percy goes to catch her, which he doesn't so she slams onto the floor. She rises on shaky feet holding her head.

"Ow what the hell! Did you guys bean me over the head or something?" She's glaring at Percy and me, but I cover for him.

"Must've been a migraine or something, you were possessed by a fortune telling spirit after all."

She thinks about it for a moment but accepts my answer regardless. Good, we've got a prophecy, now we just need to find Nico.

* * *

We've been looking around the camp for Nico for almost an hour and we haven't seen a trace of him! Mr. D told us he's becoming a man in the camp and I really hope it's not what I think he's implying; Him and Will are too young!

We finally caught a break when Katie mentioned seeing him take off into the forest. I thank her, and we follow the path she mentioned seeing him follow. The pathway was relatively long and surprisingly safe. We didn't run into any monsters along the way, which I was glad for since I'd prefer not to on this quest.

I keep along the trail until it leads into a small clearing. Pushing some of the brush out of my way I see Nico relaxing against a log with a bunch of Nymphs practically hanging off him; Jesus Nico aren't you gay?

But what's that he's holding, and what's with the funny smell? Is he smoking a cigarette, but I've never seen one like…. Wait a moment!

"NICO DI'ANGELO!" He jumps in surprise and all but one of the Nymphs take off back into the forest. The last remaining Nymph glares at me as she rests her head on his chest.

"Hey, what's the big idea? I'm trying to relax here!" She better bite those words soon. I give her _The Look_ but it's ineffective. She just rolls her eyes at me -lady who do you think you are? – and scoffs.

"Please woman! I've seen that look a hundred times already from people who pull it off much better." I'm completely taken aback, who can pull off _The Look_ better than me?

She scoffs and pulls away from Nico, he calls out and clumsily reaches for her. "Wait, Nefeli! Don't leave me with her!"

Nefeli just gives him a look of pity before disappearing into the woods. I turn back to Nico and he shrinks under my glare. I walk over and yank the blunt from his hand and hold it in front of his face.

"Tell me what this is, Nico!" I put a hand on my hip and his hazy red eyes try and avoid eye contact.

"It's weed…" I'm going to kill this boy, I swear!

"This is illegal, Nico! You're going to get in trouble if someone finds out!" He starts snickering. "It's medical, Annabeth. I've got Mr. D's permission for this."

"Medical! Nico, don't you dare lie to me. Where did you get this from, anyways?"

He looks away again and starts rubbing his arm sheepishly. "I don't want to tattle, man. He's my friend…"

"Nico." I press a little harder. He opens up after a second. "Uh, fiiine! Malcolm found it in the Athena Cabin and I bought some."

\- has stopped working…

Rebooting…

I'm going to _kill_ Malcolm when I'm done with this quest.

As much as I want to throttle Nico right now, we need him for the quest. I sigh despondently and pinch the bridge of my nose, "Look, Nico, we need your help. We've been given a quest to save Cabin Nine and the Oracle mentioned a child of death."

He groans in annoyance and reluctantly agrees. "Okay fine. What's the prophecy this time?"

I quickly fill him in on the details of the prophecy and he seems happy to hear that this quest isn't mentioning someone dying horribly and, frankly, so am I.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed this quest isn't going to be too bad. Well, I'm pretty certain it won't when compared to the Great Prophecy and the Prophecy of Seven.

I start to walk back towards camp and I motion for the idiots-I mean boys to follow. Percy walks with Nico and I hear him say, "Hey, Neeks. Got any more?"

"PERCY!"

* * *

We're all back in the war room with Chiron, it's just the four of us this time, and I go over the prophecy with Chiron.

"The first part mentions a 'wicked stone garden' and how we must venture back." I say to Chiron as he listens intently.

Percy pipes up quickly, "Medusa's Lair. It's the only place that makes sense."

I nod my head in agreement and a couple murmurs of acceptance follow. I continue onto the next part, "The lost one will be recovered, and the Child of the Dead shall find what has been sought.". We look over to Nico who seems to have cleared up from his high a little.

"Well, I guess this means we're going to find someone who's been lost, and then I'll find something someone wants?"

Chiron follows, "Prophecies are often misleading, but I agree with Nico. I believe the correct interpretation is to find someone whom has been lost to us and discover something desired by another. Whom they might be and what this discovery is, I have an idea of the identity. I believe it to be Samson."

I continue onto the next section, "I think so too, the next part is- 'With the help of the creator you will find one, In the dusk gardens and under the golden tree.'. The creator is likely Samson and he's going to help us find the two pieces somewhere with a dusk garden and then another with a tree."

Percy raises an eyebrow with a confused expression on his face, "That sounds like the Garden of the Hesperides. A dusk garden and a golden tree."

I can understand why he thinks that, the prophecy seems to word it as 'in this place and over here' but I got the impression of the golden tree being separate from the dusk garden.

"I think they are separate, the dusk garden obviously refers to the Hesperides, but the golden tree is more perplexing. I think it refers to something else, the tree the Golden Fleece used to hang from in the Sea of Monsters."

The room feels a little colder at the revelation, and I can't blame them. The Sea of Monsters was a very _unpleasant_ experience when I was young, frankly I'm surprised I don't have nightmares anymore from that time.

Percy cuts through the dreary atmosphere by finishing the last portion of the prophecy, "From the old ones take heed, Restore the past to redeem the future." We're quiet, this part isn't quite so clear and feels grander than the other sections.

"Maybe we need to talk with people? Learn from them and fix something broken in the past so the future will be better." This makes sense to us, at least it's a good start for understanding the last portion.

Chiron nods, "Then we have our prophecy and where to begin. Nico, Percy, Annabeth, I suggest you return to your cabins and prepare, these are very dangerous place you plan to travel to. Don't underestimate the danger, even places you've visited in the past."

The boys pile out, but I stay behind. I have to tell Chiron about something.

"Mrs. Chase?" I clear my throat. "Chiron, it's about Nico. I caught him doing drugs in the forest."

Chiron's face becomes serious as he gives me full attention. "Thank you, Annabeth. It explains his odd behavior today. Tell me please, what drug was he doing in the woods?"

I lean forward and Chiron mirrors me, and then I whisper. "He was doing marijaunas…"

He's quiet and his face is neutral. Then he leans back and groans, running a hand across his face. "Ever since Mr. Solace told him about its medical purposes he has come up with new illnesses to get more. I'm starting to think Chironitis is not even a real disease now."

I try and hold back a smile, Nico is too sassy for his own good. I bid Chiron farewell and start back towards the Athena Cabin, maybe I can talk to mother in my dreams?

Whatever happens on this quest I mustn't fail, the fate of Cabin Nine depends on it! I'm still confident about this though, after all a Child of Athena always has a plan!


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Hey guys, back with another chapter! Just want to say a big thankyou to everyone to everyone who's taken the time to read this story. As of writing this Henosis has gotten over 380 views! Thank you, guys, so much! I really appreciate it, and I hope everyone who celebrates it enjoyed their Thanksgiving! Quick note this chapter won't be the best edited since I had to rush it out, but I hope it's still enjoyable.**

* * *

 _With Samson, Winter 1965_

They say time heals all wounds, that everything gets better if you wait it out. I suppose it has wisdom in a naive sense, it's just a shame no one talks about the mean time. That there's no respect for what someone has to go through while they wait to _get better_.

Two of my four brothers died only a few months ago, according to my peers in camp I should have moved on already. To them two dead demigods is just another part of life.

To me it has more meaning than anything else, to me the pain is still just as fresh as it was when I cradled their bodies, it's just as painful when I was dragged away from them by Nymph's and forced back to camp on the back of a fire breathing horse.

Robert and Thomas, bless their hearts, held nothing against me when I came back sans two brothers. Robert never raised a voice or a hand to me and gave me nothing but support and acceptance, he would always tell me four words when the days became too gloomy, ' _it's not your fault'_.

Thomas always had a hard time displaying emotion and empathizing with humans, he seemed the most unaffected by Steven and William's untimely passing, but I know otherwise. He loved them just as much as I did, I knew this even without using my powers. He gave me a beautiful portrait of them one day, the surrealism and the deep coloring made me weep. Most people are disturbed by his use of blood, but I understand why now.

Blood is a representation of life, and by painting William and Steven he has given their image life again in a twisted and surreal way.

I couldn't ask for better brothers.

We all were fucked up in some ways, but we have each other. The bonds between the three of us has only become stronger, as have we.

* * *

Life in camp has been improving over the past few weeks. The air has turned cold, the leaves have fallen, and the wood nymphs have begun their hibernation as frost coats their bark.

Winter has arrived.

As thankful as I am for the wards that prevent proper weather conditions from entering the camp, I wish we could get snow. Snow is beautiful and a staple of the winter months, oh well.

"Nickel for your thoughts?" I'm shaken from my thoughts as a rusty Nickel is shoved in my face.

I chuckle at my friend's antics. Moroiaca, or Mori as she prefers, is the eldest Hecate camper. She's pale as snow with blonde hair that's almost white and always tied in a long wavy pony tail. Her eyes are a startling emerald green and many people seem mesmerized when looking into them, might be a natural slight charm speaking.

She's about my height and is a fan of wearing trench coats no matter the temperature. When I asked her about it she simply responded _aesthetic_. She comes from Iceland but grew up here in America, so her speech is almost indistinguishable. Though if you get her flustered or mad enough she'll get her accent back as she throws fireballs or other magic spells at you.

Despite being a Hecate child she's very nice, bubbly even, and very kind. She's the least likely camper to curse someone, but she still will singe your clothes off if pushed far enough. Better than being turned into a rabbit or a hamster I suppose.

I take the Nickel and shove it in my pocket, "Just missing the snow, I haven't been able to properly enjoy Winter since before I came here."

She bumps my shoulder with hers as we sit in the empty amphitheater. "I could try and summon some if you want? Can't promise it won't be fire or acid, I'm not so good with gentle elemental stuff."

I snort, "No thanks, I can't imagine Chiron being happy we melted the amphitheater or burned it down."

She just chuckles and pulls out a book from her coat and starts to read through it. She reads for a few minutes, but glances at my every so often. I can tell she wants to ask me something, but she's always been a nervous person.

"Hey, Samson?" I look over at her, "How's, you know, everything I guess?"

I hum, I can understand her concern. I haven't been in the best state of mind until recently, and Mori's being a good friend asking. I don't tell her, but I really appreciate it.

"I've been better, but also worse. I'm getting better now, thank you though." She smiles and starts reading her book again.

"So, still want me to teach you about magic? It's a handy skill, and that amulet of yours really makes the difference in terms of learning."

I nod, learning proper magic will be an amazing asset for finishing the two remaining pieces. Yes, I still plan on finishing them, two lives were sacrificed to make the glasses and I won't let their sacrifice be for an unfinished project. I'll do this for them!

"Oh, absolutely! I only have used my amulet for enchanting my works and learning proper spells will incredibly useful in the future."

She looks away and starts chewing her lip, "Are you sure you want to finish this 'special project' you've been working on? I don't know, you lost your brothers on the first quest. Is it really worth it? You said you're not even half finished yet!"

I look down to my feet while Mori's looks at me expectantly. "I can't say if it's worth it or not, but I can't stop now! I've spent so long preparing for this, I can't let their sacrifice be in vain." I meet her eyes with determination, "I will succeed, and I'll do it for them."

Mori sighs and looks away, tucking the book back into her coat. She stands up and asks if I want to go visit Max. I reach into my bag and pull out my special magic hand mirror I enchanted last month as confirmation and stand with her and offer my arm. The mirror is an old fashioned six pointed silver hand mirror, and it's one of my most favorite tools I've invented so far.

She wraps her arm around mine and I focus my thoughts into the mirror. Suddenly everything around us spins as our bodies feel like they're being stretched and compressed and our vision becomes blurred as distorted shapes and images pass through our eyes for a few seconds until the spinning stops and the world becomes normal.

As we come back to our senses we're now in an entirely new place, it looks like a fancy guest bedroom based on the size. The magic mirror I just used is one of the more useful creations I've made. It actually functions as a means of teleporting and communicating through mirrors of any kind. My hand mirror essentially lets us travel by teleporting through a mirror closest to the destination intended, which is really the only drawback.

Thankfully the hand mirror also travels with you, it would be inconvenient if you could only travel one way after all. It took some time, but I found a name I think fits quite well for it, _The Looking Glass_.

Those books were always a favorite of mine when I was young, so I suppose I named it in honor of my childhood memories.

Mori punches my shoulder and gives me a look. I blush and look away in embarrassment, I get lost in my thoughts a lot. She laughs and starts walking towards the door of the fancy modern style mirror we teleported too.

Max's home is very nice, it was built only a few years before he was born. Though calling it a home is too modest since it's closer to a mansion than anything else. Max lives in Boston with His father Kolbe Strife and a few nice enough maids. His father is a wealthy and successful… someone. I'm not exactly sure what he does but money isn't something Max has ever had much to worry about.

Well, at least not physically. Kolbe is a… punctilious person, and his love is a hard thing to earn, even for his son. Max has assured me, over the past few months Mori and I have been hanging out with him, that Kolbe is a loving father.

I have my doubts, but I keep my thoughts to myself.

I've yet to meet the man, but his home leaves an impression on me. It's another power I've developed recently, the ability to divine feelings from places, not just people anymore. Kolbe's presence in his home is angry and dominating, he has control of everything and it's almost suffocating. I keep my power dull in his home, I begin to feel sick otherwise.

Thankfully Max's father is almost never home, only the few maids and Max himself regularly occupy it, so we almost never need to sneak around.

We exit the room and make our way through the hallway, we pass by a chunky maid, Aurora if I remember, and she tells us Max is in the dining room. Mori thanks her and we start heading downstairs. The maids and us have an agreement of sorts, we keep Max company and they don't tell Kolbe. That and a few crispy dollar bills as well.

* * *

Max was nose deep in thick textbooks when we found him at the table in his fancy dining room. I peek at the covers and see most have varying titles referring to 'Law'. He's been very busy preparing himself for college since I last met with him.

Well, perhaps Kolbe is preparing him, but Max seems enthusiastic regardless. Months ago, I mentioned a lawyer as a potential career path and he seems to have taken my suggestion to heart. I'm proud in a strange way, I figured he could be a good lawyer and at age sixteen he's already begun large steps down that path.

"Hey, Max." I call out to him and he flinches hard, it seems like he had no idea we were here. He turns around and rubs his tired eyes before smiling. "Sam, Mori, what's up, guys?!"

He half yells us over and we sit across from him on the table. "How've you guys been? Probably busy at the uh, _camp_ , right?"

Not long ago we told him all about the world of demigods and monsters, and surprisingly he took the news very well. He told me that he's seen some weird stuff before Cacus raided Bennington and almost burned it down.

He was quite thankful when he learned that almost every single monster leaves mortals alone, even clear-sighted ones. The Laestrygonians are one of the few exceptions, but they almost never gather in large numbers and mortal police usually shoot them dead, mistaking them as psycho murderers if a demigod doesn't kill them.

I nod in affirmation, "I've been preparing myself for the next coming quest, making new equipment and what not." He gives me a warry look.

"Sure, you're all good? I mean, the last one was…" He trails off, it's an uncomfortable subject. I raise my hand in placation.

"I won't be going anytime soon, not until after my birthday next year. I'm just giving myself proper time for training." He sighs in relief and possibly annoyance, "If you say so…"

Mori does a weird hand waving gesture and draws our attention to her. "Enough with the gloom, lighten up a little! Max, how've you been? I see you're brown nosing into some chunky book, tell me about that."

"These? Just law study books, boring stuff ya' know? I'm gettin' a head start on all this junk, everyone is telling me about how hard it's gonna be so I figured why not spend some time now."

He leans back in his chair and his back cracks _very_ loudly. How long has he been hunched over like this? Mori just gives him a skeptical look. "Dude, you're sixteen, live a little! You don't have to kill yourself in work now, that's what being old is for."

He just waves her off and yawns, "Nah, I'll rest when I'm dead! And as far as I can tell, I'm still breathin'!"

"It's a good attitude to have, son." I flinch a little and turn around to see a tall man with dark hair and piercing green eyes. He's an older man, in his late thirties somewhere, but his body is well defined in the business suit he's wearing.

How the hell did we not hear him sneak up on us?

While he has a smile on his face, his eyes are hollow, like there's no joy in them. His hair is styled into a crew cut and his face is stony and hard. Replace the dark grey suit with military fatigues and he'd be indistinguishable from a drill sergeant.

Max freezes up when he sees the man, but quickly adjusts his posture so he's no longer slouching over the table. It doesn't take long to figure out who this man is, the air of authority and the command of subservience is a clear give away.

I don't like it, but this man is Max's father.

"Father, you're home early! Was it a slow day today?" Max has become significantly more formal, his accent lessens, and he sounds closer to a New Yorker than someone from Boston. His personality almost flips completely, before he acted like an average Joe and now he almost sounds like a high-class heir to a business mogul's empire.

Looking back on it, Max potentially might be.

Kolbe tsks in disapprovement and begins to walk over to our table, his heavy shoes thudding across the floor with far more weight than there should be.

He stands over us and leers down like we're sheep and he is the wolf. Max seems ready to bolt, but Mori and I remain unfazed and stoic. As strong as this man presents himself, we're much stronger than him in many ways.

Kolbe seems agitated that we give him bored looks, but he doesn't otherwise comment. He leers over at Mori and something akin to approval gleams in his eyes as he starts to talk, "So, this is the _girlfriend_ I've heard so much about."

Mori almost chokes when he says girlfriend. Something about how he said it seems off, like there's a message behind it only Max and his father quickly cuts in before Mori, who's pretty red-faced in anger can lash out, "She's just a friend who happens to be a girl. We're not -we're not you know…"

Kolbe's eyes change from a bastardization of happiness to disappointment as his smile is replaced with a frown. "A pity, still you have the time to make it work out. She seems healthy enough, decent figure and pretty eyes, she'd be an excellent wife."

I almost want to throw up and Mori and Max seem so too, gods this fucker is old fashioned! Max quickly jumps up and slams his hands down on the table before any of us can say anything, "Father! That's my friend, you can't just disrespect her like that it's disgusting!"

Kolbe's face becomes thunderous and Max quickly backs down back in his chair, avoiding eye contact with him. Kolbe's breathes in deeply and his face becomes relaxed and calm as he exhales.

"Maximillian." His voice is cold and distant yet commanding and powerful despite being spoken evenly and calm. "Meet me in the study. As for you two –" He turns to us. "-get out of my house."

We look at Max, but he keeps his head low as he shuffles out and around the corner. Kolbe gives us a pointed glare and begins to escort us to the front door like we're convicts in prison.

We're quickly pushed outside into the streets of Boston and the door slams shut behind us, locks clicking in a clear message that says, ' _you're not welcome here.'_

Mori and I share a concerned look, but there's nothing we're going to do without Max saying so. This is his life and his family, but we'll butt in immediately when he calls for it; he's our friend, and this is what we'll do for each other.

I reach into my pack and pull my mirror out again and offer my arm to Mori. She takes it, and we're off back to Camp Half-Blood.

* * *

A few weeks have gone by and now the Winter Solstice has begun. Normally this day only has value to the Olympians, but it's much more important to me now because for this Solstice, a select group of Olympian Demigods have been chosen to visit their parents on Mount Olympus, and I am one of them.

I should be happy but I'm closer to anger and fear than I am happiness. I'm angry at mother for her failure to mention the Laestrygonian's we'd encounter, but I'm also fearful of what will happen when we actually talk.

I haven't spoken with mother since before my first quest, so I have no idea how she's going to act towards me since two of my brothers died on that quest. Will she be furious at me, is she going to turn me into an owl as punishment for failing my brothers?

Oculus is safely packed away in my bag, I can only hope presenting it to her could be some form of appeasement. Show her that I succeeded in completing the quest, just that it came with a high cost.

I'm sweating a little as myself and the six other campers pile into the hippie van with Argus and Chiron, the later in his wheel chair in the back compartment, and I silently pray that everything goes well today.

* * *

The Solstice was an unbelievably boring event. The Olympians were busy with their meeting which sounded more like a childish argument than it did important business based on the muffled screaming we could hear through the thick stone walls of the breakroom we were forced into.

After a couple hour Chiron came back after abandoning us in this boring room, which thankfully had a couple snacks and refreshments available to us, and begun to lead everyone away towards what I believe Mr. D calls the 'party hall'.

We walked for a few minutes and we all, sans Chiron, took the time to appreciate the stonework and the architecture of the Olympian central palace. This place is absolutely beautiful and gigantic, though I wonder how the rioting in the city is going? I look through the pillars and sure enough I can still see black smoke against the night sky, guess they haven't worked that out yet.

The Party Hall as we arrive is just a massive mostly empty hall, easily the size of a football stadium just by looking at it, with a couple ratty foldable tables spread about which thankfully are well stocked with foods and snacks.

All the Olympians, whom thankfully are human sized since last time Poseidon accidentally squished an Aphrodite camper when they all were in their giant forms, were waiting for us, each of them donned in a beautiful and colorful Chiton.

Zeus made a quick speech about honor and parental bonding and what not until for several minutes until Hera elbowed him in the ribs to shut him up.

He clears his throat and we all just look at each other awkwardly for a few moments until Artemis steps forward and motions to the food. We all race past our parents, I think Apollo even got trampled by the Demeter and Ares councilors, and begin to tear into the delicious food set out for us.

They all give us strange looks, but we ignore them for the most part since we haven't eaten anything since breakfast back at camp.

* * *

The party was a little boring entertainment wise, but still pretty fun for the most part. They only let the cabin councilors up on Olympus during the Winter Solstice to talk freely with our parents so this day is always popular and meaningful to the few that are able to come.

I'm currently talking with Artemis whom thankfully isn't mad I lost two of the silver jackets she gave to me and my brothers. She was quite pleased when I offered her the scale of the Drakon I killed a few months ago as a gift and thanks for her help.

We didn't talk for very long since she had to go pry a very drunk Apollo off a pillar as he refused to let go for some reason and started yelling at everyone.

I'm not sure how, but I eventually ended up deep in conversation with Poseidon about fishing in rivers versus in the ocean. He's actually a very nice man, and I'm pretty glad he doesn't hold a grudge against me since him and mother are rivals for some weird reason.

At one point he accidentally bumped into the Aphrodite camper and she nearly burst into tears when she saw it was him. Thankfully Allison, the Aphrodite camper, didn't die when she was squashed last year but has had a fear of anything sea based since then.

Aphrodite herself glared at Poseidon and he sheepishly backed away with his hands raised and went to mingle with Hades whom removed himself to a dark corner to read a novel of some kind.

Aphrodite and Allison moved away somewhere else and I was left alone with a cup of punch as Gods and Demigods mingled around me. A hand on my shoulder got my attention and I turn around to see the person I love the most but also wanted to see the least; my mother, Athena.

She has a warm smile and her eyes are full of genuine mirth, but still I'm completely nervous. I have no idea what she actually feels about me right not. Mother guides us away from the small crowd and into the space between two pillars to give us decent privacy.

"Samson, -" I stand at attention, oh gods here we go! "-I understand you've completed the first of the three special quests we've planned. I would like to give you my thanks and congratulations for a job well done."

Anger rises in my chest, but I try and push it down. I grit out in strained politeness, "Thank you, mother. It was an, interesting quest for lack of a better term. I met more goddesses than I thought possible and earned some interesting items along the way."

She nods in approval, "I see you've begun preparations for the second quest, this is good, Samson. Take the experiences of the first so you may better prepare yourself for the next. Perhaps this next one will be less… eventful than the last."

I can feel myself getting angry again which mother takes note of with a bemused raised eyebrow, "You've something you wish to say?"

Fuck, I can't take it anymore, "Mother, Steven and William are dead. They were murdered by Cacus, what about them?" I almost shout but Athena remains stoic and completely unfazed.

"What about them, Samson? They've passed on towards Elysium now, holding onto your emotions and attachments will only be detrimental for you."

I almost scream, but I hold back with only a raised and angered voice, "They're dead, they're your children! My brothers! Is that all we are, just convenient things that you'll forget as soon as we die!"

She starts getting angry too and gives me a warning tone, "Watch how you speak to me, _son_. I am your mother and you _will_ show me proper respect."

Unfortunately, I'm far too angry to back down, otherwise I wouldn't have ever said these next few words. "Why should I? You're a shitty mom anyways!"

Pain erupts across my cheek as my head if forced to look somewhere else. I cup my stinging cheek and it takes a moment to realize that she just slapped me _hard_. I can already feel a bruise forming when she suddenly grabs my wrist and starts pulling me away and out of the hall.

Fuck she's squeezing so hard! Gods her grip is worse than the thralls of Lamia, and it feels like my wrist might snap!

A few of the other gods and demigods notice our precarious state as Athena half drags me out but they don't say anything when they see the fury etched across her face.

Something pops in my wrist and stinging pain erupts up the length of my arm, I think she just broke my wrist!

Mother drags me out into an empty pavilion and practically throws me in front of her. I clutch my wrist with my good hand as the air around me feels heavy and grim, like a terrible accident is about to occur. I suppose it might actually, fear and dread course through my body and I curse myself mentally for letting my anger explode like that!

Her voice is thinly controlled anger as she practically spits out my name, "You have no idea how close you were to death _Samson!_ You should count yourself luck you're my favorite, so I'll choose to forget your _little tantrum_."

She's practically towering over me as I try and stand properly, "I'll be taking your fancy mirror as punishment for your disrespect, if I'm feeling generous than maybe I'll return it at the end of your next quest!"

She spins around and struts back inside and after a minute or so the suffocating presence of her anger vanishes and suddenly it feels like I can breathe again.

I walk over to a bench and nearly throw myself onto it as I try and calm down my damn near hyperventilating body. Sweat and tears stream down my face and guilt rises in my gut, I shouldn't have said that, I almost died!

I'm not sure how long I stayed out here alone in the darkness when golden light filled the pavilion. I look up and see Apollo staring down at me with pity in his eyes. I look way in shame, gods I'm such an embarrassment! I let my brothers down as well as my mother, and now I'm just a pitiful demigod crying over death like some coward!

Apollo kneels down and moves my sleeve up to reveal the dark purple band of flesh around my wrist. I want to hurl at the ugliness of it, but Apollo touches it with his hand and a gentle feeling of remedy overpowers the pain.

When he removes his hand, my wrist is completely healed, and the stinging pain is long gone. I nearly blurt out my thanks as my voice croaks from the strain of crying, "Thank you, Lord Apollo."

I'm not sure what else to say, everything just feels wrong right now and I'm having a hard time trying to think. Thankfully Apollo doesn't mind, and even though he acted completely drunk minutes ago he's completely clear with his words, "It's no big deal. Hey, so I heard your conversation with Athena back there. She does care, you know? We all do, demigods dying will always be hard on us. Athena has a hard time showing her grief, to her emotion is weakness. But she still grieves, just in private."

He sits on the bench next to me. "I can't agree with how she handled your… incident. But I suppose her reaction was pretty tame, I mean she turned someone into a spider monster when she got challenged to a knitting contest!"

I smile a little and laugh with Apollo, mother can be a bit over-reactive sometimes.

"Look, you're a good kid with some parent issues, most demigods have them. Gods are horrible role models, but we do love you, okay? Here, I'll send you home, how's that sound?"

I don't say anything but I just nod. Apollo smiles and suddenly everything is taken over by blinding alabaster light. When my vision clears I see someone I thought I never would again. "Joseph!?"


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Whew, glad that holiday is over! I'm back here with another chapter, and for those who've read Path of Discord and Strife of Rome this chapter will be very fun for you since this is the closest we've come to a crossover… SO FAR! Hope you guys will enjoy this one, it was really fun to write!**

* * *

 _With Samson, Spring 1966_

THWACK "AAGH!"

"AGAIN!"

That there, my beautiful children. THWACK -That is the sound of me getting my ass kicked by my elder brother. THWACK "GAH! FUCK, JOSEPH!"

Joseph grunts at my apparent weakness, "Fine ya' girl scout we're done for the day. Did better than before, lasted almost five minutes this time."

I can only mumble an okay in response since I'm currently face down on the ground in the training arena after an hour and a half long sparring session with him.

As I found out after returning from the Winter Solstice party, Joseph didn't actually die when Cacus raided Athenos Manor. He was, however, hospitalized for some time until Nefeli and a few Nymphs broke into the hospital to bust him out.

Being homeless, Joseph and the Nymphs decided to move back into Camp Half-Blood as training instructors and general staff. Most of the campers were happy to have pretty girls serving them at dinner, they were less so about Joseph as he's a rather… cruel instructor.

He nudges me with his foot and I groan. "Need a couple minutes, baby brother?"

I can't see it, but I swear I can _feel_ his stupid grin leering down at me. Gods, for a sixty-year-old man Joseph is still surprisingly spry and strong. I haven't even seen the full extent of his abilities yet since his cane functions as more than a serrated bludgeon, I've just yet to see what it's alternate ability is. The Hephaestus campers confirmed it can transform in some way.

The cheek bastard won't show us yet, though. When we ask him to show us he always say ' _too dangerous, you'll ask and won't let up 'till I give in. Then someone's gonna' get hurt or die'_.

He lifts me to my feet and plops me down on a bench. I can feel the bruises and cuts he left me all over my body, but I'm thankfully in a strange way I suppose. Joseph has taken me in as an apprentice over these past few months, honing my strengths and minimizing my weaknesses.

It's tough training, I've broken more bones in the past month than I have in sixteen years, but It's so worth it. Brother bonding is part of it, but It's certainly helped my physique quite a bit too. I haven't gained much muscle mass, but I have become far more toned.

The Aphrodite bitches-I mean girls- have started complimenting me much more now. I've even had a few- _intimate_ encounters with them these past few weeks. I'll tell you what, it's a real confidence booster. Mori always chastises me after though, she calls them harlots and 'fille de joie's' in her cute Icelandic accent. Cute?

She's just worried about me, that I'll start getting attached to them. I always assure her that's not the case, that it's only for fun and doesn't mean anything. Well, not to me at least. A few of them dote over me a lot and it's really annoying.

Hell, I can see them at the other side of the arena right now! They're only staying away because Joseph scares them and he'd make them fight if they got near. It's the reason why they avoid him like the plague.

Joseph plops down on the bench next to me and hands me a water bottle which I greedily slurp down.

"So, kid." I stop drinking and look over to him, "What's the deal with that mortal, Max? Can't tell what it is between you two."

I just shrug, I've been asked this a few times by a bunch of people, I don't really know what they mean.

"He's a good friend, was there for me when I got depressed after William and Steven. Don't know what I can say beyond that really." He gives me an odd look but doesn't comment, so I go back to downing this delicious water.

Joseph was changed a bit after what happened before. Physically he's got some burn scars and a nasty looking cut down his cheek. Mentally he's a different person, he's harsher and his judgments certainly hurt when you mess up a bunch during his training.

He's lost some of his compassion and mirth too. He jokes far less and always seems grim and grumpy, kind of like Dionysus actually. I guess… losing William and Steven hurt him too, even if he knew us for less than a few days.

He slaps me hard on the shoulder, "Alright enough of this sappiness! Take yer' butt over and get fixed up in the infirmary."

I groan as I stand up and start heading towards the Big House. Joseph's staying behind to pick up the mess we made since Chiron yells at him if he doesn't. As I'm about to exit the training grounds I hear Joseph yell something at me. I turn around and just barely catch the blunted arrow in the air before it could hit my chest!

Joseph grins as he puts the bow in his hands back on the weapon rack and I roll my eyes at his antics. To test campers' reflexes Joseph likes to shoot arrows at them to see how well they can block them, or in my case see if they can catch it.

Yeah, Joseph is fucking crazy.

I toss the arrow to the side and continue back towards the infirmary.

" _What darkness lingers, thee?_ " I jump in surprise and almost swing an arm, but I hold my reflex back when I see that it's just Thomas.

Thomas is very silent and almost seems invisible at times. He's almost as stealthy as a Hermes camper in the way he can just vanish when you aren't looking at him.

" _Brothers, mothers, fathers? Deep down. Deep, deep, never ending."_

I roll my shoulder and groan, "I'm just going to the infirmary to get patched up. Joseph knocked me around good and some ambrosia is in sure order."

He tilts his head and his bushel of brown hair bobs with it, _"Maniacal screams, down here in the hollows?"_

"Oh? Mori's looking for me? Thank you, Thomas."

He nods and walks away back towards the arts and crafts building, campers parting from his way as he mumbles curses and speaks in gibberish.

* * *

Mori was waiting outside of the Big House for me after I was done being patched up. She smiles brightly at me as I open the door and I can't help but reciprocate.

"Samson! I've got to tell you something right quick."

She gives me an expectant look and I nod at her as a sign to continue. "You know how me and my dad didn't really get along so hot? Well he's invited me back to our home in Iceland, I haven't been there in years!"

Mori and her father have a kind of strained relationship. Aron, her father, is a superstitious person and has a poor view of Hecate. Mori was the result of a one-night stand between Him and Hecate, which then ended with him being given a child he didn't want.

When Mori was six, Aron sailed with her to New York and turned her over to Chiron at camp before sailing back home and leaving her here. It's the cause of the biggest rift between them, but at least they communicate with letters every other week or so.

They don't get along well, but Mori still cares for the man despite him being a bastard in my opinion.

Mori's smile fades a little, "But um, I'm going alone, and I'll probably be gone for a few months. I don't think I'll be able to send an Iris message since he's pretty warry of 'witchcraft'. I'll be fine, though! So please don't worry!"

I'm taken aback a little, it's dangerous for demigods to be alone, and she's going to be for a few months! Despite seeming bubbly and not looking very impressive, Mori is an incredibly powerful demigod. She can take care of herself perfectly fine, but I'm still worried regardless.

She pulls us into a hug, "Okay, just be careful, Mori. I can't lose you, you're too important to me."

I feel her heat up and she stutters out, "I-I-I'll be fine, geez! I'm not some half-baked sorceress, anything nasty gets a fireball to the face!"

We separate, both of us smiling and our eyes wet. Mori tells me her flight is leaving early tomorrow, and that I should go back to Boston and meet up with Max. She looks at me with concern when she tells me that something is bothering him when she swung by his home a week ago.

We talk for a minute before parting ways; Mori to see her father and homeland again, and me to help out a friend in need.

* * *

Traveling through mirrors is always an interesting experience. Even though mother took my first Looking-Glass, it wasn't the only one. I've made a couple of them, but each one takes a lot of resources that aren't easy to come by.

I'm back in the old bedroom in Max's mansion, but something feels different now. The air has a new feeling to it, whereas before it felt heavy and oppressive now it feels thin and morose. It feels sad.

I walk through the house trying to find Max, but the place seems abandoned which is odd since the maids live here too and are always around doing something. For this place to be empty is just… wrong.

I walk around a bit longer and finally I see Max in the living room. He's very despondent looking, and he has an aura of sadness around him. When I feel his emotions, I feel so many kinds that it's almost overwhelming. I feel fear, anger, resentment, but also joy and disgust.

"Max?" I call out and he looks up and finally notices my presence. His eyes are red and puffy from crying, but there's an underlying presence of happiness to them. Whether or not it's from seeing me or something else entirely, I don't know.

He scooches over on the couch and pats the seat next to him. I sit down beside him, and silence stays in the room between us as he looks down I at his hands.

I reach a hand out and awkwardly put it on his shoulder in some attempt of comfort. I'm really not good at this, but Max seems to appreciate it anyways.

We stay silent for a few moments until Max speaks out, his voice croaking in strain, "My dad's gone off to the war. He got his draft letter last week and left this morning."

I wrap my arm around his shoulder and pull him closer. The war's taken a lot of Men from their homes and torn many a family apart. I frown at the thought of Ares racing around the world bringing war with him and having the gall to smile and be proud of his actions.

"I won't lie, I _hate_ that man." Max practically hisses out as if any mention of his father is venom in his mouth. "When he told me he's going off to war I felt _happy_. I was happy at the thought of him leaving, happy that maybe out there in rice fields some young man would get lucky and take my old man down."

He lets out a small laugh, "The idea of him dying made me excited. He'd be gone, and I'd be free!" He's silent for a moment, "My moms' has never been around for my whole life, you know? He never let me try and find her before, but with him gone I went through his address book and found out she lives Catskill New York."

He turns to me and he has a new conviction in his eyes. "Sam, I'm gonna find her. I'm gonna knock her fuckin' door down and get answers. I'll wring them outta' her if I have to! You don't have to, but I'd appreciate it if you could give me some backup."

I'm silent for a moment as I consider everything Max just laid out on me. This is a serious matter, a personal matter, but he's my friend. I'll always be there for him.

"Are you sure you'd want that? Traveling with a demigod is dangerous, almost certainly we'll be attacked by something."

He wipes his eyes and leans back into the armrest with a cheeky grin on his face. "I'm not worried bout' that. You're my best friend dude, together nothing can stop us!"

I can't help but grin as well, Max has always been a strong and convicted person.

"So, what's the plan?"

* * *

Let it be known, Maximillian Strife is not a sane person by any means. When he told me he could defend himself, I was expecting boxing or martial arts skills, maybe a knife. I was quite surprised when he led me to his room and pulled out a pair of black Python Revolvers.

His giddy attitude about his weapons left me just a little nervous as words spilled out of his mouth at a thousand miles per hour, describing things like the make, the history and the type of steel used in them.

He holds his guns in the air and tries to look like some kind of western outlaw. Unfortunately, his short stature and casual fancy clothes makes him seem closer to an adorable nerd than anything intimidating.

He shakes the gun in his left hand, "Vengeance." Then the other, "Justice."

I keep staring at him dumbly.

"These two are my babies. They'd blast through some sheriff and drop his deputy fifty feet behind him. There's no monster that wouldn't think twice about messin' with us when I whip out these bad boys!"

"Max, you'd be surprised by the idiocy of monsters. I'm more worried about the fact you're bringing hand held cannons out into public."

He shrugs his shoulders, "You're a magician, right? Can't you do that fog magic stuff or whatever it is?"

"The Mist? I think so, haven't used it on mortal made object. Give me a second, I'll give it a shot." I reach out and snap, the telltale sign of the mist being used crackles through the room.

Max looks down at his guns, "Uh, guess it worked? You did that firecracker thing, so I guess it's fine."

"Well, I guess we'll find out in a second here. How're we getting to this place? I can't use the mirror with a normal human."

He just grins, and a shiver works its way down my spine.

* * *

"So, Sam." We swerve and I smack my head into the window. "Tell me bout' your pops if that's okay?"

We swerve again and I almost smack into Max. He's driving us in his shiny cherry red Corvette to Catskill, swerving and dodging around cars on the highway while going at speeds far beyond the legal level.

"Well, he was an interesting person, that's for sure. Never lied or abridged the truth when I asked about things, never showed affection but somehow still made me feel loved." We're quite for a few moments.

"My nickname from him was Little Retard."

He almost chokes on his water bottle. "Jesus, I don't know how I'm supposed to respond to that."

I shrug and we keep talking about things for a while to pass the time. We drive for a few hours until we need to stop to fill up on gas again.

It was late in the afternoon when Max pulled us into a dingy gas station off the highway. The place seemed old and rundown, the sign was rusty and a few of the letters were missing. The sign looks like at some point it read Murphy's Gas Hole. Clever.

We go to the pumps, but it seems that the hose has been chained down through the handle. Looks like we need the attendant to unlock it.

Max and Myself walk inside the store and a foul smell fills our nose. It smells acidic with a mix of iron and small traces of brimstone. The lights are flickering, and the inside looks trashed like something large threw the inside all around and it's been left there for months. There's no sign of the attendant.

I pull my dagger out and look at Max, he nods and pulls his revolvers from his belt. I tell him to follow behind me and we silently sneak around the counter and head towards the back.

The smell of iron becomes stronger and seems to be coming from behind the office door. I creep over and slowly push the door open and peek inside.

It's pitch black inside and I can barely make out anything inside. I reach over and flick the light switch, but nothing happens. I tell Max to guard the door and creep inside and feel around the desk for drawers.

I open a few and feel around inside until my finger brushes a ring of some sort. I pull them out and sure enough it's a ring of keys. As I turn my foot clanks into something round on the floor. I'm curious at the sound so I reach down and feel for whatever it was.

I find it and pick it up and use the faint light reflecting in to try and make out whatever it is. My eyes widen when I see that I'm holding an old skull with dirty brown blood dried all over it. I almost throw it to the floor, but I stop myself and set it gently back on the floor.

If whatever killed this person is still around, then dropping the remains would alert it to our presence.

I briskly walk back to the door and pull him away from the office. He gave me a curious look, but I put a finger to my lips. He starts to sweat a little as he understands something is wrong here.

We sneak around the counter and back outside. I hand Max the keys and he unlocks the chain and starts filling the car with gas.

He wipes the sweat from his forehead nervously, "So uh, what was it back there? Nothing big, right?"

I keep my eyes trained on the building scanning for movement through the dark and dirtied windows.

"I don't know, there wasn't anything in the office except for the bones of some poor soul."

He gulps nervously and starts looking around, "Think it's still around, is it near?"

I shake my head, "I don't know, the bones seemed kind of old but I could still see dried blood on it. Just fill the car up and we can be gone from this place."

He nods and goes back to pumping. Nothing happens as we wait, the pump is old and fills the car _painfully_ slow. After a few minutes it clicks, telling us that the tank is full.

We waste no time and quickly hop in the car, Max puts us in gear and we race out of the lot and back onto the highway.

He lets out a shaky sigh in relief and asks a question to try and calm our frazzled nerves, "Any idea what it was back there? Smelled like a chemical plant in that place."

I look out the window and watch the fields pass by, "I'm not sure exactly, I think it was a small Drakon or something. That chemical smell was probably it's venom or acid. Small ones can be really dangerous since they're so quick."

He gulps nervously, "Shit man, an acidic dragon! Fuck I'm glad we're out of that place!"

I pat him on the shoulder, "Welcome to the world of demigods."

* * *

We drove for another hour until finally we saw a sign for the town of Catskill. His face grimaces as he sees several groups of hippies meandering around the town. He pulls us into a public parking lot and turns the car off. He breathes heavily, and his knuckles turn white from gripping the steering wheel so hard.

I put my hand on his shoulder and he looks me in the eyes. His eyes are watery when he meets mine, but he quickly pulls himself back together after a second and we get out of the car.

Max takes us to a fast food place first before we do anything else, both of us hungry from the long trip. We decide to eat in an old park not far away, the scenery seems to calm down Max's nervousness. The peace giving him time to prepare for the coming confrontation.

I look around the park at the families walking about and enjoying the serenity of nature. I turn to Max, "So what are you going to talk with your Mom about? You said she wasn't around, but have you ever met her?"

He chews his sandwich and swallows it down with a sip of his drink, "This'll be the first time we've met. I just -I just want to know why she wasn't around. To know if she cared at all."

I look at him in pity, Max hasn't had it easy with his parents. "Are you sure this is what you want? You may not like what you'll find if you do this."

He shakes his head downtrodden, "It's something I have to do, for closures sake. I just want to know so I can move on."

I keep quiet, I'm not sure what I can say. This trip means so much to Max that I don't think I can even comprehend it.

We eat in peace for a few minutes until Max notices something, "Hey, Samson? Where'd all the people go?"

I look around the park and sure enough it's completely empty. I look at the streets outside the park and I see no one else either.

I hear a loud, unholy shriek come from behind us and we quickly spin around. The _thing_ that made the sound doesn't even look real. The creature has a rooster's head and body with a long serpent tail and wings that seem like a mix between a bat and a bird with foot-long talons at the bend of its wrist.

"SAM WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT!" Max screams and I nearly go deaf from his yelling.

"It's a cockatrice, don't look in the eyes they can stun you!"

The monster shrieks and charges at us. I roll between its legs and slash at its underbelly. As I turn around to ready another attack it lashes it's clawed foot out and grabs my face and throws me across the grass, it's claws raking across my face as it does.

I slam into the ground and use the momentum to roll quickly back to my feet. I barely jump out of the way as it slashes at me with its scythe like claw. I'm forced to keep back tracking as it doesn't let up with its attacks.

A loud crack snaps through the air as the super chicken shrieks from the hole Max just blew into its side with his gun. He lets another round off that slams into its thigh, dropping it down onto one foot. I run forward and quickly stab it in the neck.

It screams and slams me to the side with its claws, slamming me into a tree fifteen feet away. My silver jacket protects me the claws, but I feel a rib crack from colliding with the tree.

I stand to my feet and quickly charge the beast as it turns its attention to Max. I bring my xiphos through the left wing and slice strait through, taking the whole thing off. I lashes out to kick me but I dodge back and slash my dagger and sever the foot at the ankle.

It shrieks and cranes its head around to gore me with its sharp, spear-like beak. I roll backwards as it slams its beak deep into the dirt. The monster rips its head free and putrid globs of acid fly from its mouth like projectile vomit.

I throw my sword into the side of its neck as I dodge the blast of acid puke. My sword hits the pressure organ in its neck and the blast of vomit loses power until it can barely pool from its beak.

Murder chicken seems to glare at me as it stops puking itself and starts hobbling awkwardly at me. Before I can prepare for its attack chunks of flesh and bone explode from the side of its head as Max blows its brain cavity out with a well-placed shot from Vengeance.

It rocks back and forth for a second until falling forward and splashing onto the ground in a pile of gold dust.

I pull a vial of nectar from my jeans and take a sip, the elixir works immediately as the pain in my ribs fade and the flesh on my face weaves back together and closes the gashes.

I wipe the blood off my face with my hand and walk over to a shell-shocked Max and pat him on the back. "Good job, man. It's a good first kill."

"…Holy Shit, Sam."

I walk over to the corpse and fish my sword from the dust pile. As I do I notice an odd bulge buried in the gold. I pull it out and see its one of the talons from the wing.

Max walks over and stares down in disbelief at the remains of the monster he just killed. I tap his shoulder and hand him the talon. He looks down confused at it, "What? Why do I get this?"

He moves to give it back, but I shake my head, "It's a spoil of war. Your kill, your trophy."

His eyes widen as he stares down in astonishment at his earnings. I pat him on the shoulder but stop when I realize I'm splashing my bloody hand onto him. Thankfully he doesn't seem realize as he's still dumfounded from killing a cockatrice.

* * *

It didn't take us long to find Max's mothers home. He knocks on the door and an older looking woman wearing a tie-dye dress and flower crown opens the door. I wait down at sidewalk, but I still can't hear them well since I bashed my head in the fight earlier and my ears are still ringing.

Max and the woman disappear inside her home and I'm left outside alone. Max asked for privacy with this part so I'm respecting his wishes.

Two or so hours pass, the sky turns dark orange as dusk begins to settle. Finally, the door slams open as Max storms outside and past me down the street.

I look back but all I see is the door closing gently. I turn back around and catch up with Max. He's furious as his face is red in anger and his body is tense and rigid. Tears pour down his cheeks and past his scowl, but I stay silent as I follow Max back to the car.

We arrive back at the car and Max puts his hands down and leans over the hood. I gently rub his back as he cries for a few minutes. He wipes the tears from his face as he hiccups and then turns to me, "She's a fuckin' waste Sam! Some stoned hippie who passed me to my dad after I was born! Got knocked up as a teen and couldn't be bothered to try and stick around!"

He turns around and leans back against the hood and looks up in the sky, "She tried to act all sad but it didn't mean anything. Thirty-two years old and not one fucking letter!"

He closes his eyes and inhales deeply before exhaling for a solid fifteen seconds. When he stops his face is calm and his body relaxes. He looks back to me with a sad smile on his face, "Thank you, Sam. I really appreciate you being here for me. Let's go home."

"Not so fast, boys."

We look over and see a girl standing with her hands on her hips as she looks at us. She has raven black hair pulled into a pony tail and fair skin. She's wearing dark sunglasses and a studded leather jacket with spikes and light bell-bottom blue jeans.

She's looks about our age, sixteen, but something about her seems off, she's far too pretty to be human. She takes her glasses off to reveal a pair of startlingly pretty red eyes. It takes me a second but then it clicks, the only being with red eyes like this is…

I drop to one knee, "Lady Eris, it's a pleasure to make your-" She cuts me off, "Oh stop with dick sucking, Brown Noser!"

I stand back to my feet and look to Max and see he's completely frozen in place. Then he quickly smooths out his clothes and hair and extends a hand out to Eris with a sly grin on his face. "Hey, gorgeous. Name's Max Strife, what can I call you?"

She looks at him unimpressed before adopting a seductive smile. She struts over and pushes him so he's sitting down and leans over his lap, placing her hands on the hood.

"Well there, lover boy, they call me Eris, biggest bitch this side of the world." She leans forward until her face is only inches from his. Max turns red like a tomato as his sly grin drops off into a nervous smile.

She pecks him on the cheek and suddenly stands back up with both Pythons in her hands. "Thank's for the guns, love." Her face is indifferent as the weapons disappear in a puff of red smoke.

Eris turns around and starts walking away, "Saw you avenge my son, damn rooster killed him a while ago back at that gas stop. Thing tracked you down when you stole those keys, the petty bastard."

She turns her head around and looks back at Max and winks, "IM me sometime, kay?" She turns around and starts walking away again.

Before she can leave, Max quickly runs over to her and grabs her hand gently, "Wait! Don't go yet, we just met!"

She looks flattered at how gently he's holding her hand for a second before she makes her face neutral, "I've got places to be, love. I'm a busy goddess this time of the century."

His eyes widen, and he quickly drops to a knee and bows his hid, "Then I pledge myself to you, I promise I'll give you everything you'd ever want!"

He looks up and she's shocked by the conviction in his eyes. Eris seems dumbfounded for a second, "I'm a goddess, Max. There's nothing you can do for me."

"I don't care! I will do anything you ask, I swear it if it makes you happy!"

Her mouth gapes in disbelief, "You treat me… like I am more than I am, Max."

Their eyes sparkle as he speaks, "Eris… to me you are _everything_."

He stands, and they stare deep into each other's eyes as I stand there awkwardly and try to figure out what the hell I'm looking at.

She leans and whispers something into his ear and takes the claw I gave him earlier then disappears in a puff of red smoke. He walks back to me after a few moments. He doesn't say anything and opens the driver's side car door and scoots in. I raise an eyebrow and walk around and scooch into the other seat.

He sits there with a goofy grin on his face until he looks over at me with stars in his eyes. "Sam?"

"Yes Max?"

"I think I'm in love."

"Max, you're sixteen."

"Doesn't matter, I love her!"

I look down at his empty gun holsters and raise an eyebrow, "She robbed you."

He ignores my statement and starts the car.

"What the hell is an IM?"


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Hey guys back with another chapter! This one is fun since I get to write some cool scenes and -what is this? Samson's getting a girlfriend! Oh snap, wonder how that's gonna pan out since he's nearly socially incompetent! Fair warning, there's going to be some sexualization in this chapter and references of sex, close your virgin eyes if stuff like that ruffles your jimmies.**

* * *

 _With Samson, Summer 1966_

"What do you mean he's dating a goddess?"

"Exactly as I said, he looked at her and said some pretty words. Now I'm spying on them across the street at this little Mom and Pop diner they're eating at."

"The Hades, why are you spying on them? That's kinda creepy, Samson."

I roll my eyes in dismissal, "Max's dating the goddess of discord and doesn't even fully appreciate that fact. Fool practically swore an oath to her after she kissed him on the cheek."

Mori puts her head in her hands through the wavy Iris Message and groans comically, "Uugh! What is it with you boys and wanting to hump anything that gives you a pretty smile!"

I shrug my shoulders and look back into my binoculars, "Hormones probably. Max is a growing teenage boy and she's a pretty girl. It's nature at its most pure, horny things fucking."

She starts snickering, "Guess we can only wish him luck now. He kinda rushed into this but you can't back out after gaining the fancy of a god, they fall in love quickly and are pretty devoted until a baby pops out. I'm telling you, he's gonna end up with a psychopath for a kid!"

"You're not wrong about that, Eris children end up crazy often. Hearing voices telling them they'll be a king and stuff like that. I swear I'll flip if he actually names the theoretical kid Sam."

Mori starts laughing and I look back at her, "That's so sweet of him! I guess your bromance runs pretty deep, huh? Listen, I've got to go, some weird stuff has been happening in Husavik and papa is getting all weird."

I say my goodbyes and she swipes the IM away. I look back in my binoculars and Max and Eris and my skin nearly jumps when Eris suddenly turns and looks at me, drawing her finger across her throat and then points at me.

Taking the hint, I quickly pack up my belongings and use my mirror and skedaddle the fuck right out of there!

* * *

Forging is always a relaxing past time of mine. The heat and the thrill of crafting beautiful equipment and weapons always gives me a pleasant adrenaline rush.

Talking with Joseph we decided I should change my fighting style some. I've generally used my sword and dagger to parry and counter attack, but my only defense has been to dodge. While that's perfectly okay he recommended I give myself some other means of defense besides relying on my silver jacket and jumping from harm.

After I finished a pair of gifts for Mori when she returns back to camp I started working on a special enchanted shield.

In its disguised form, the shield appears as a metal engraving wrapped around the left sleeve of my silver jacket. When activated it turns into an elaborate Ghisi shield with a unique ability aside from transformation. When you assume a defensive position, an invisible shimmering barrier forms around your body that protects from projectiles of any kind.

The down side is that something of sufficient strength or consistent strikes can break the barrier and that forces the spell into a cool down mode of sorts for a short time until you can use it again.

I added the spell because of the Cockatrice incident, I have little range against targets and I can only dodge projectiles so much. With this enchantment I can defend against projectiles and still advance into sword range.

After a few days of hard work and enchanting my shield is finally complete. I graft the metal into the sleeve and give it a few tugs to make sure the bindings hold and it's not uncomfortable around my arm.

I move my arm and turn it in a few directions. I don't feel any resistance or tugging from the engraving, so now it's time for the next test.

I stand in a defensive position and will the shield to expand. Instantly the engravings pop to life and a small shield, two feet in diameter pops around my arm, leather straps hold it snug against my arm. I wave the shield around and mimic blocking and riposting maneuvers.

The shield doesn't jiggle or feel loose one bit, and the weight is perfectly balanced and comfortable on my arm.

I smile at my latest creation, a few of the Hephaestus kids give me looks ranging from anger to jealousy, some seem like an amalgamation of both. I give them a cheeky grin and they huff and go back to their own works. Ha, sucks to be them!

* * *

It's been about a week since I last talked with Mori, she told me she'll contact me if something comes up, but that she otherwise wants privacy.

I understand why she wants her privacy, I'm just worried about what she told me when we last spoke. Strange things happening around demigods means monsters almost ninety percent of the time.

" _Darkness imprisoning me. All that I see, absolute horror."_ Gods fucking damn! I nearly jump out of my skin when Thomas sneaks up on me again. I turn to him, he's currently holding a twitching rabbit in his hands.

"Hello, Thomas. What was that about Richard?"

He hacks into his hand, " _Rich does he call ye, over yonder and through the windows. In home, stories to be told."_

"Ah, thank you very much. I'll go with you." Thomas and I start walking back to the Athena cabin to meet with Richard. Apparently he has news for us.

When we arrive at the cabin a strange smell fills my nose. It smells salty with the strange scent of fish. We open the door and see a beautiful woman with flowing black hair and tanned skin deep in conversation with Richard. She's wearing a beautifully embroidered dress with flowing designs depicting sea life and other ocean-based imagery.

I idly recognize the design as one Steven wove last year. My heart aches in remembrance but I shake off the feeling as the woman gives us her attention.

She turns to Thomas and Me after she finishes whatever Richard was with her about. The lady nods to Richard and he walks out of the cabin taking Thomas with him, leaving me alone with the strange lady whose beautiful brown eyes bore into my light grey ones.

She sizes me up for a few moments before she speaks in a soft and kind voice, "Hello, Samson. My name is Amphitrite and I am in need of your assistance."

I give her a respectful bow. Gods what is it with me and running into goddesses! At least Amphitrite has a reputation for being nice compared to most other goddesses. I'm just worried about pissing her off since she's the wife of Poseidon and him and my mother _hate_ each other.

He seemed fine with me when we met last winter, so he doesn't hate her children automatically, which is good. It's just that if I piss off his wife he's going to be pissed off at me. I like the water, so I REALLY can't afford to fuck this up!

"Lady Amphitrite, it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

She rubs the back of her neck nervously, "Look, usually gods are more formal about this kind of stuff but I'm in a hurry here. A few days ago, I let my husband's favorite pet out to use the bathroom and he swam away. You can probably guess gods don't keep small things as a pet, and he's rather fond of sea serpents."

I gulp nervously, does she want me to fight and capture a sea serpent! How the Hades am I going to do that?

She takes not of my disposition, "You're nervous, I get it. Don't worry about killing him, he reforms pretty quickly so I can keep it a secret until then."

She walks over puts a reassuring hand on my shoulder, "If you accept, I'll greatly appreciate it and owe you a favor later. I believe you can do this. Your mother gave me her recommendation and you've already proven yourself an accomplished hero!"

I'm flabbergasted, this is a dangerous task she's asking of me. But at the same time, having a favor from a goddess is incredibly useful, especially from a sea goddess since eventually one of the places I have to travel in is an incredibly dangerous patch of ocean.

I take a shaky breath, my decision already made, "Lady Amphitrite, I accept your quest."

She smiles warmly, and my heart skips a beat. "Excellent! I'll send you to the place you need to be, and don't worry, your friend there will be invaluable with your quest. Oh, and don't worry about camp, I'll tell them you're doing something important for me, kay?

Before I can respond she snaps her fingers and what looks like bubbles swarm around me, distorting my vision as flashes of imagery race around me and the world feels like it's spinning crazy fast.

Then suddenly it's over and everything settles down and the bubbles start popping, revealing I'm in an entirely different country based on the people speaking in a language I don't understand and the signs are in an entirely different alphabet.

I look around at the town I'm in, everything seems like it's old and made of wood. The smell of sea salt and brine water fills my nose.

The air bites my face in cold and a faint drizzle falls from the cloudy sky. Overall, wherever I am seems like a pretty shitty place. As I start to wander a voice calls out from behind me, incredibly in English.

"Samson?"

* * *

HATCHAA!

"Oh, for fucks sake, Samson! I gave you a tissue box for a reason!"

"…I'm sorry."

Mori sighs in exasperation. She stands and walks to the kitchen before coming back with a bowl of hot soup. I wrap the blanket around my shoulders snugger and take the hot bowl she offers me.

"What in the world are you doing here? Better yet, why were you out in the cold without a hat or anything warm?"

I spoon hot soup down my throat, the heat comfortably burning its way down. "Amphitrite sent me here, a sea monster of hers is running loose and she wants me to kill it."

Mori bites her lip and looks away, "…I see."

Silence overtakes the room. I look around the old living space, creaky wood boards and old-fashioned wall paper covers the wall. Picture frames and knickknacks fill the shelf space. The room is dark as there's no overhead light, only candles and the faint evening light illuminates anything.

The house is tiny and compacted, a few steps take you to the kitchen and a few more to the stairs leading to the second floor.

"Hey, Samson?" Her voice is quiet and soft, almost like she's a small child in trouble. "Can I ask you something?"

I move over and she sits next to me on the soft couch. She twiddles her thumbs in her lap nervously, so I throw some of my blanket over her shoulder. Mori blushes a little and turns to me, "Samson, I-I like you."

I tilt my head to the side, "I like you too, Mori. You're a really good friend."

Something between a hiccup and a laugh escapes her lips, "Oh my gods, dude. I mean, like, I really - _really_ like you."

Before I can ask her what she means she leans forward and her lips meet mine. My eyes widen as a strange feeling rushes through me. She pulls back and I'm frozen in place, I don't know what to do. This feeling was entirely different from kissing the Aphrodite girls.

She walks over to the stairs and stops at the base, blushing wildly but still maintaining a coy smile, "Good night, Samson. We need to talk more in the morning." And then she's gone.

…Holy shit.

* * *

Artemis is giving me a weird look as we stand outside in the empty streets, the moon high in the sky. She's currently in her 'adult' body.

"Nephew… I'm a virgin goddess. This is something for Aphrodite to handle, not me."

I scratch my head, still flustered from earlier, "I didn't know who else to ask. You're the only woman beside Mori I can trust with this stuff."

Her ego seems boosted for a second before she tilts her head to the side, "Why didn't you ask Athena? She's your mother and dates people I think."

I give her a weird look and she understands, raising her hands in defeat. "Right, definitely shouldn't go to a parent about dating advice."

"You've been around for millennia, I figured you'd know about this. I mean surely you've dated someone before?"

She crosses her arms and looks up at the moon, "…okay there's been a few. Like, five maybe. It just didn't really pan out well, they were sweet I'm just not ready for that stuff."

We're quiet for a minute then Artemis speaks up, "All I can say treat her like a god, or queen. Devotion is important too, at least I think it is."

I nod my head vigorously, her wisdom bouncing around in my head. Goddess, queen, devotion. She looks back at me, "I don't say this often, but take what I'm saying with a side of salt, I don't actually know what I'm talking about."

I turn away as she flashes out in a burst of silver light, leaving me alone in the streets to consider everything that's happened in the past few hours.

Turning around I walk back inside Mori's house and freeze in the entrance way. Should I sleep on the couch or… should I join Mori upstairs? I'm really confused, and I still don't know what to do.

I fumble with the hem of my shirt for a few minutes as paranoid thoughts race through my mind. Does she like me? What's next? How do I make her happy? They race through my mind for several minutes until a hand wraps around my own.

I flinch a little and look up to see a sleepy-eyed Mori in a long nightgown. When did she get here, how did I not hear her?

She gives me a soft smile and I feel my face heat up a little. Her fingers intertwine with mine and she leads me upstairs and towards her room. I'm full on blushing now as she takes off my jacket and invites me to lay on her bed.

Mori snuggles up to my side and pulls the blankets over us. I release a mental sigh of relief that we're only napping with each other right now, I don't think I'm ready for what usually happens when a girl brings a boy into her room.

I wrap an arm around her and she does the same with me. I close my eyes as my beating heart slows down and my flustered panic levels out until peace fills my being.

Hypnos soon overtakes both of us as we sleep in each other's arms.

* * *

The following morning Mori took me around town and showed me the sights. I found out that this town is Husavik and is her birth place. It's a small harbor town in northern Iceland. Fishing and tourism is really it's only call to fame.

The weather sucks and the people seem very rugged, but it has a quaintness to it. There's a charm in the air, everyone is happy here even if it's a very boring fishing town. I can see Poseidon being quite happy here.

We walk around for a few hours until Mori pulls us into a nice small-time restaurant. Mori and I order some nice coffee and Mori continues with the topic she hinted at last night.

"Samson, my father and his fishing vessel have gone missing. They've been gone for a few days, and the coast guard won't investigate until they miss their check in a few days from now."

I give her a curious look, "It sounds like boats are gone for a week at a time then, are you sure they just aren't busy? Not missing?"

She shakes her head sadly, "I'm sure, I have these _feelings_ when things go wrong. I can feel when a disaster of some kind has happened, and right now that feeling is practically clawing my chest open!"

The waitress drops off our coffee and Mori takes a healthy gulp from hers, "Samson, I'd appreciate it if you can help me find my father. I have a hunch that this serpent you're hunting is related in some way."

Oh gods, boats and sea monsters don't get along or leave survivors often. I give Mori a sad look of pity, "Mori, you might not like what you'll learn if we search for your father. He might not… you may be able to bring him back."

She shakes her head, "It doesn't matter, if I have to I will. There's a chance they're on a raft or something. Maybe they never sank at all and they're stuck dead in the water. Samson, no matter what I have to know!"

Her eyes dazzling emerald gemstone eyes stare at me with resolution sparkling in them. I almost feel like I can get lost in them, but she snaps her fingers and I'm drawn out of my hypnosis.

Shaking my head clear I reach into my pocket and pull out a small jewelry box. Mori's eyes widen as she brings her hands to her mouth to cover her gasp. I open the box to show two rings inside, one a golden color and the other silver.

Her eyes start to water as I hand her the silver band which she quickly slides onto her finger.

"Samson, I-I..."

I give her a coy smile, "Rub the ring with your thumb."

She does, and her eyes widen as the ring transforms into a long silver Naval Cutlass, the word 'Razor' is engraved in beautiful calligraphy along the blade.

I put the gold ring on and it turns long golden Spanish Cutlass, 'Shear' is engraved along mine in equally beautiful calligraphy.

Tears roll down her cheeks as she stares at our weapons in shock.

"Surprise? I made these for us when you came back, they're companion blades in a way. When you open your hand it transform back into a ring on your finger, so you'll never lose it!"

She runs her hand down along the spine of her blade, appreciating the feeling of the cool metal under her finger tips, "They're beautiful! I don't know what to say!"

"That's not all, twist the handle with your hand." She raises an eyebrow at me but looks back down at the sword and twists the black leather handle.

Brilliant red flames erupt from the blade like it was dipped in oil and lit on fire. The magic flame is silent as it dances off the blade, yet the handle remains completely cooled in her hand.

I do the same with my blade and blue flame soon dances across mine. "The fire is like celestial bronze, it can't harm mortals, but it is completely deadly to monsters, they'll like up like Greek fire when hit with this."

We open our hands and the weapons turn into rings on our fingers. Mori quickly leans over the table and pulls me into an odd-looking hug.

"Samson, I love it so much, sister swords? It's so sweet!"

Compliments gush from her mouth and I practically turn red as a tomato. I'm not use to all this praise and I'm getting very flabbergasted.

We talk for a little longer before I bring us back to the most important topic of today, "Okay, how are we going to search for him then? Do we have a boat?"

She now has a Cheshire Cat style grin, "Oh, I know how to get one."

* * *

When she said she could get us a boat, I didn't expect her to brainwash the crew of a hundred-foot fishing vessel and enslave them to us. 'It's just temporary!' she tells me, but I'm just a bit uncomfortable controlling living human beings this way.

We've been out on the water for a few hours and we've seen no sign of her father's boat yet. Mori is having the captain call out on the radio to see if her father would answer but all we've gotten back is static.

The waves are choppy, and the winds are strong, but our boat, The Lusankya, runs through them with no issues.

I'm watching off the starboard side of the boat, keeping a lookout for signs of anything really, boats or sea monsters. One of the crewmen walks over and leans against the rail next to me.

His accent is as thick as his beard and arms when he speaks, "There's a bad wind in the air, this cruise is cursed."

I look to him, "Cursed? How so?"

He points with his head to the head mast and I see a large black raven resting high on the wooden beams. "Ravens' are harbingers O' death. Not good luck when they're around on a boat in the middle of the sea."

I gulp and return to my lookout, Amphitrite's pet sea monster combined with an Icelandic omen of death leaves me just a tad bit worried.

I decide to switch and look off the port side. Half an hour in I notice a strange flock of birds far off in the distance. It almost looks like a tornado of them as some rise from the ocean and others dive down. It takes me a second to realize but I've heard of this before.

"CAPTAIN!" I yell out over the crashing waves and the roaring gales. He opens the window and poke his head out and looks at me, "LOOK!" I point out at the swarm of birds off in the distance. He nods and disappears back into the command room, the boat then turns coarse and we start sailing towards the swarm.

Within half an hour a putrid smell hits our nostrils. It smells like rotting meat and salt. Fifteen minutes later and our boat pulls up next to the shredded carcass of a whale, the sea water stained an eerie red color.

We all look at the body from the side and half the sailors form crosses with their fingers over their chests while others mumble prayers to god. I send a quick one to mother myself.

The captain pulls us away from the dead whale, but lingering dread fill the crew. That whale was killed by something, those bite marks belonged to something much bigger than a natural predator.

* * *

The sun was hitting the midday time when a crew member screams out at us to look at something off the starboard bow.

We all race to the side and look at what he's pointing out. It's hard to see from a distance but as we get closer it was clear that we're looking at the debris from an old boat.

Mori's face is that of devastation when she reads the name of the boat painted on the side of a large piece of floating debris, 'The Ragnarok', the name of the boat her father captained.

I pull her into a hug and we hold one another tight as she weeps into my shoulder. The crewman gives us looks of pity but continue about their duties. The captain signals everyone to hunker down and he turns the boat around and we start sailing back to Husavik.

About twenty minutes into our trip Mori has started to calm down as we rest in a cot in the lower deck. One of the biggest tragedies of demigod life is how quickly you have to move on from things.

Demigods have very short lifespans, we're forced to grow up far quicker than any regular person should. But as the gods like to remind us, we aren't normal, we're better. It doesn't help with the pain, unfortunately.

The boat suddenly jolts harshly and Mori and I are thrown from our cot. We stand to our feet and race to the top deck. The crew members are leaning over the sides, trying to see something in the water. I look over and see that the boat is stuck or something, we aren't moving anymore.

I turn around and yell, "Captain! What's happened!"

His window pops open, "We hit something, lad! The engines are shot, mechanics are on their way to the engine room!"

AAAGH!

We freeze at the blood curdling scream, but I quickly turn around and hear a splash, the crewman next to me is completely gone! My eyes widen, and I back up into the middle of the boat, my sword flashing to life in my hand.

Mori see's this and she follows suit, "Sailors! Back from the edges, arm yourselves! We're not alone out here!"

I hear them start yelling at each other as they run around to crates and start pulling out fire axes and machetes and get into a defensive position in the center of the boat.

Eerie silence hovers over us, the gentle waves and winds doing nothing to counter the horror of what we're about to face.

Another slam hits the boat and we're thrown to our feet. As we rise a sailor starts screaming in absolute bloody murder as he's raised high into the air by what looks like massive octopus tentacles.

I nearly hurl when they wrap around his waist and pull him in twine! His gargled screams fading as his two halves are pulled off either side of the boat.

Then the boat explodes in excitement. The men start screaming _Krake_ as dozens more tentacles pour over the sides and onto the deck. I start swiping at the ones that slap at me, dodging the small piranha toothed mouths on the tips.

Mori launches a wave of fire from her sword and kills a half dozen tentacles, several others dive and wrap around the legs of four sailors and drag them overboard.

I duck under the bite of a stray tentacle and it snaps its jaws around the neck of the first mate behind me with lighting speed. I quickly severe the tentacle in two but I wasn't quick enough to save the man's life!

He falls back and his blood spills out across the deck. There's about twenty tentacles left snapping at us and only six of us left. The crewmen handle fairly well suffering only minor cuts as they huddle backs against each other in a defensive circle.

Several slam into the window of the command room and smash around until the pull the captain out and drag him underwater, the man screaming the entire time as he stabs the tentacle to no effect with a small pocket knife.

Mori and myself start working our way to the man pile, fending off eight snapping jaws as we backtrack. I rake my sword through four as several others simultaneously strike out at Mori, but she ducks under and draws her cutlass through all of them. Something shrieks under the water and the tentacles retract off the deck and disappear under the waves.

The surviving men raise their weapons and cheer in victory. Mori and I share a look, this doesn't feel right, that shouldn't have been easy.

The boat rocks violently again and a massive form raises itself in front of the boat. The thing is massive, it has what looks like a mix between a snake and a shark. Its head looks big enough to swallow an elephant whole and its teeth look like sword sized sharks teeth pulled in a bastardized smile.

Its mouth opens and it _screams_ a loud guttural roars as several tentacle flail out of its mouth. The men behind us freeze in horror. I hear some scream _jormungandr_ but I ignore them and pull a red flower from my jacket.

I give it a good chuck and it lands inside its mouth and explodes in a loud crack like a grenade. The monster doesn't react and slams its head down on the deck, causing the shock wave to destroy most of the floor and throw us to our feet.

"Samson!" Mori yells and pulls me to my feet. "Samson, what monster is this, do you know?" I get a good look at it, it's flesh is slimy and a very deep blue, almost like the deep ocean. The eyes are tiny and fogged over, like it's blind.

I quickly think back to ocean serpents I know of and only one pops into my mind, "It's Cetus, the one Perseus slew to save Andromeda!"

The beast roars and it feels like the boat shakes from the power of its voice. "How are we supposed to kill it? We don't have a gorgon's head!"

I think back to the tale of how Perseus slew Cetus, one account has it that he used Medusa's head, which I don't have, but a less known version is that he stabbed in in the neck and killed it that way.

"Mori! Keep it distracted, I've got a plan, but I can't be seen by it!"

She nods and throws what looks like a sparkling glob of red light that smashes into the serpent's snout. It screams and several dozen tentacles pool from the mouth like it's throwing up an octopus.

I jump off the side of the boat and start into the freezing cold water and start swimming under the water towards Cetus. Under the water I can see more of the body as it stretches so far into the deep I can't even see the end of it!

It must be five-hundred feet that I can see in the illuminated water, a horrible feeling grows in my gut at the thought of how massive this thing must truly be.

I shake my fear away and start swimming to the back of Cetus and to its vertebrae. Muffled sounds and crashes explode above water as debris and shredded corpses fall past me and sink into the black depths of the ocean.

After swimming painfully slow in the freezing water I grab loose bits of flesh on the monsters back to hold myself in place. I summon my new sword and stab into its spine and start pulling it across. I feel Cetus jolt in pain, but I continue cutting into the groove until I cut past the bone and into the muscle and nerves underneath.

I feel the Cetus twitch and convulse until the body starts to drop as I sever the nerves controlling the lower parts keeping it afloat. I let go of the flesh and start swimming to the surface as Cetus's horrifying mouth races past me like an anchor dropped in the sea.

I surface and swim over to a loose rope and pull myself back up to the deck. There's blood and body parts all over the surface and I nearly throw up when I slip on a severed arm.

I'm lifted to my feet and a sick relief fills me as I see the only survivor of our trip is Mori. She gives me a sad smile as tears stream down her cheek. Realization then hits me as she sets me down on a chair in the command room that at least forty men have died between two boats in the past few days.

Twenty on ours, and another twenty on her father's ship, her father being counted on that list. Mori pulls out a small hand mirror from her coat and wraps an arm around me as I start to shiver violently from the cold.

Then the world spins as she transports us away, leaving an old abandoned boat to sink under the Icelandic sea.

* * *

It's now late at night back at Mori's house, I just got done with a nice hot shower and Mori is taking hers right now.

I've switched into some old pajamas Mori loaned me as I relax on her bed. With that whole ordeal we just experienced, a night in a warm bed shared by two people is more than acceptable right now.

I hear the shower stop and after a few moments Mori enters the room wearing a puffy bathrobe. Her facial expression is unreadable, like a void almost. I can't see any life in her eyes or on her face and my heart aches in pity and sympathy. Both of us lost our fathers and neither of us could give them a proper burial.

"Samson," her voice is steady and soft, "-can you help me with something, please?"

I nod, "Anything you need, whatever it is I'll do, no complaints."

She gives me a grateful smile and her robe drops, leaving a very nude Mori in front of me. My eyes wander her body for a second before I remember my manners as I quickly turn away, my face red in embarrassment and shame. A soft hand snakes around my cheek and turns my head so I'm looking back at Mori.

A strange feeling passes over me that I can only think of as being my teenage hormones as she stares into my eyes with a look of lust on her reddened. Gods the look of her makes me feel faint, but she pulls me into a passionate kiss and energy flows back into my tired body.

This almost certainly isn't healthy. Mori's latching onto me after losing her father mere hours ago and this decision we're making isn't wise in any fashion, but we ignore logic and give in to our primal desires.

What happens now is a night I'll never forget, the night we first truly made love.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Hey guys, back with chapter 13! This is a slower chapter, but this is the start of quest number two! It's officially the Golden apple arc, it should be a fun one with the enemies I have planned. Enjoy guys!**

* * *

 _With Samson, Summer 1966_

My name is Samson Akira. Wait… my name is Daisy Loren. I am a sixteen-year old boy, my mother is Athena. No, no that's not right at all. I'm a nineteen-year-old girl, my mother is Lamia. I never knew my father, mother killed him after I was born. I have thirteen older sisters, and they all scare me deeply.

I aM a MOnsTeR

When I open eyes I can hardly see anything. My vision is blurry and shaky, but it quickly clears up and I realize I'm resting on an old bed and snuggled up with pillows, stuffed animals and a nice heavy blanket.

It feels nice and comfortable, like I could stay here forever. Something feels weird though, my body feels bizarre for some reason, like it's not actually real.

I look around my room, it's dark and sparsely decorated a few of my personal belongings. There's no light or windows, but I can see fine no problem. The walls look like old wooden paneling, some look chipped and cracked. It doesn't matter, this is home, even if it's super shitty.

I brush my black hair- I mean my auburn hair from my face. My hands, they're so small and delicate. I know they are supposed to feel this way, but this doesn't feel right. I feel like a stranger in my own body.

My skin, it's smooth and tan. It doesn't feel right, but I know this is how it should be. I stand on my feet and wobble a little. My legs don't feel right. They're thin and smooth, shorter than I remember.

I walk over to a mirror on the wall and look at my reflection. My face is soft, almost childish with large glowing green eyes.

I have a thinner body, but my muscles feel tight, deceptively so for how skinny my arms are. I'm fairly short, only just over five feet if I were to guess. I'm wearing a large floral night gown that exposes my shoulders. I blush a little.

Overall, I'm fairly pretty, beautiful even in an innocent way. Did I always have breasts?

I shake my head to clear my bizarre thoughts, of course I did, I'm a lady, we have these things. There's a knock on my door. My head hurts for some reason, it feels like there's a pounding in my brain. It's almost someone is trying to break into my mind!

Or are they trying to break out? But who wants to break out, I've always been me.

I open the door and a woman is standing in the doorway. She has glowing green eyes and raven black hair. Her features are soft, but her eyes are sharp, like a predator. She towers over me by a solid foot and I feel like curling up back on my bed, there I feel safe.

She's wearing a blood red sundress and a large brimmed hat. Déjà vu rushes over me and I feel a little faint. Why though? I know she always wears this.

"Daisy, dear! Sleeping in, are we?" Her voice is smooth and rich, but it makes my skin crawl for some reason. I can feel goosebumps rolling across my arms.

Words roll from my tongue before I can stop them, "N-no sister. I have been feeling unwell and I was just resting so I could feel better." My voice is soft, weak even.

Her eyes sharpen, and she brings a hand and gently caresses my cheek. Her pointy nails tickle my temples, "Excuses, excuses dear sister."

I open my mouth to defend myself, but her hand shoots up to my hair and she grabs it forcefully in her fist, yanking my head back so my neck is craned upwards.

"I'll have no sass from you young _missy_." Her words spill from her mouth like venom. Tears trickle from my eyes as she twists my hair in her hand. Sister starts caressing my face again. "I'll need to punish you properly later, but for now you're needed in the circle. We're summoning our retribution for mother and we need all hands-on deck, okay?"

I nod my head and sister smiles. She lets my hair go and turns outside and starts to close the door. Before she does fully she quickly speaks out, "Oh, and boy? I'll forgive your little invasion, Daisy is mighty lonely, and I guess this is the closest she'll get to having a boy inside of her."

Her eyes darken, and fear runs up my spine, "Watch your back Child of Athena, your slight will be punished in full. I will be seeing you _very_ soon."

The door closes, and I collapse on my bed shaking in fear. The world starts going dark before exploding in a blast of light. I hear screaming.

Then I wake up.

* * *

I gasp and shoot up in my bed, gods I fucking hate demigod dreams! That one was a real weird one though, I've heard of some dreams where you see the events through another's eyes, but never where you just straight up possess someone. I shake my head to try and clear my migraine.

That was so weird and just a little disturbing. Gods that poor fucking girl(monster?), no one should be treate by their family that way. I'm still worried about her sister, both are daughters of Lamia and likely lamia themselves, but the sister seemed so much more like Lamia than Daisy.

She had the air of true evil about her.

I shiver a little at the memory of that witch, those predatory eyes giving me very uncomfortable flash backs to the last time I ran into a Lamia.

Before I know it tears spill from my eyes as I start to think back on what happened in that first quest. The dead look in the eyes of those poor police officers… holding onto the bodies of my brothers and having to carry them home on the back of Horse. Gods the smell.

I sigh in despondence. I'm supposed to be passed this, demigods shouldn't be affected by death that much. But… I just can't ignore it. Does this make me weak? I think so.

I quickly change into my clothes and exit the Athena cabin stealthily, my brothers still resting as the sun is barely rising in the sky.

I make my way to the training arena, enjoying the cool crisp morning air as I prepare myself for training. My sword springs to life from my ring and my shield expands from the metal weaving on my jacket.

I'm thankful the Jacket Artemis gave me has some kind of magical temperature control since I never feel too hot or cold when I wear it.

I ready myself in a Viking Shield Stance and imagine a make-believe enemy charging me. My foe charges at me with a simple sword and goes for a quick stab. I parry it with my shield and slash with my cutlass.

They duck under and try to bring their sword under my shield and stab my ribs. I bring my shield down on their wrist, already hearing the fantastical snap of their wrist as their sword drops from their hand.

I bring my sword around and sure enough, my foe is missing their head.

I hear clapping at the other end of the arena. I turn around to see Joseph standing there, his face passive as he claps politely like my deadly war dance was a game of golf.

His bronze cane rests at his hip, glinting unnaturally in the low morning light. His eyes trace my own and he raises an eyebrow as he follows my stare.

"Curious about this eh'? Can't blame ya', it was a gift from our mother dearest. As a job well done she told me." He shrugs his shoulders comically, "If ya' want we can spar, you've got something bothering ya', don't try and deny."

I confirm his proposition, and a few seconds later Joseph stands eight feet away from me. He angles his body and raises his cane behind his head, I note this is the Woman's Guard position.

I pull my shield into the German buckler position and slowly advance on him. Joseph paces around me, both of us creating an odd-looking combat dance. After a few minutes of fake outs and pacing around each other Joseph launches a quick overhead strike.

It strikes my shield and the power behind it shakes my entire arm. My legs buckle but I get low and lash out at his feet. He jumps over and raises his arm up and stabs down. I raise my shield and angle it so it would bounce off the top.

Suddenly his arm twist around my shield and he slaps he hard in the ribs, the forces is much weaker than usual but it still hits hard enough to knock me over. I use the momentum from the hit to roll over and quickly rise to my feet, barely deflecting his slash.

I parry with a stab at his chest, but he moves and catches it in his arm pit. Joseph then lashes out with a powerful kick which sends me tumbling back ten feet. I gasp for air and my eyes widen as he is back on he in a flash and brings his cane down towards head. I roll around and spin to my feet, quickly slashing at his arm as he draws it around for a swipe.

He adopts a fencer pose and taps my strike to the side. I quickly bring my shield up and jab at his chest like a punch. He twists his body but I still swipe across his chest, tearing his fancy cotton shirt and drawing blood across his chest.

His cane drops down and strikes hard against my shield. His power rattles my bones but I ignore it and swipe at his legs. He back tracks but I don't let him rest. I advance aggressively and start slashing at his hands and legs.

I knick his calf and he grimaces as my sword glides across his skin as though it were butter. He quickly stabs with his cane and it meets the center of my shield, the force causes me to slide on my feet back across the sand at least fifteen feet.

I hear a clicking noise, almost like old clocks, and Joseph's cane extends. Suddenly his cane turns into a whip with the main body separating into serrated pieces every few inches along the whip.

Then it strikes out like a hurricane. The whip snaps through the air so fast I can barely defend against them! I feel the edges grinding against my shield, pulling it slightly before the switch directions almost quicker than I can comprehend.

Then it suddenly lifts my shield up, and then rolls around and rakes across my legs, carving deep into my shine bones. I drop to my knees and hold back a shriek of pain as I collapse onto my back in defeat.

The fight's over, I lost. Again.

I slam my fist into the dirt, more from frustration than pain, as tears roll down my eyes. Joseph leans over me and tips my head forward. I bottle touches my lips as glorious ambrosia makes its way down my throat.

He lifts me up bridal style and carries me out of the arena. It doesn't take long and sure enough we're on the steps of the Big House. He kicks the door with his foot, mimicking knocking, and after a second the door opens up to reveal a sleep Mr. D. He looks over my wounded form and rolls his eyes and opens the door fully so I can fit inside.

Joseph take me to the infirmary and drops me in one of the medical beds. I'm glad I was wearing shorts, so it was very easy for him to wrap gauze around my leg wounds.

After a minute of first aid he pulls up a chair and plops down in it. "So-" he tells me, "What was your first mistake back there?"

I think on it for a second, "I wasn't aware enough, I couldn't track your movements and I got overwhelmed by them."

He shakes his head in disappointment, "See, that there's the issue. You think too much, you fight your instincts with your mind. As sharp as our minds are they can only do so much. Muscle memory is your friend, your instincts and feelings aren't enemies. No, they're allies."

Me looks down at my wounded body, "You've been fighting your feelings, I can tell. Don't hold those ugly things inside, they work against you. Trust me, I know this well. Spill the beans kid, tell me what's botherin' ya'?"

It takes me a moment, but I finally tell let my feeling flow free, "It's what happened on my first quest. There was so much… death. So many innocent people were killed. In Maine, this police station was taken over by a lamia. The officers, she replaced their blood with hers and turned them into thralls. They weren't human anymore, our swords cut through them like any other monster. But they didn't turn to dust, deep inside they were mortal."

My eyes start to water, "We killed them, people with families. Sons? Daughters? They won't know what really happened to them. We torched the place, made it seem like they were burnt to death."

Joseph mulls over my words for a moment, "Listen kiddo, killing those people is a tragedy. But you freed them, you ended their suffering. Hero's live hard lives, but you make the hard decisions no one else can. It's a bloody profession, but it's a path only for the strong. It's a duty to use your strength to help those who can't. Your brothers knew this well, I know that if they could see you they would tell you to carry on."

He leans down and pulls me into a hug, "You've made me _proud_ Samson. I've had many apprentices over the years, but few have had even half of your potential. Kiddo believe it or not there's not much more for me to teach you. Given more experience you'll be as good as I am."

Joseph pulls away and leaves me alone in the infirmary. Despite my ass getting kicked again, I feel better this time. My heart feels lighter and a sense of acceptance washes over me.

People died on my quest, it's an awful, horrible thing, but it can't be stopped. They're gone now, but that's okay. I can't let my sentiment ruin my current life, I'm the one alive right now.

I relax in my bed and let the ambrosia do its work, after all, in a few months' time I'll have to start the second quest. Going to need my full strength for that one, Golden Apples aren't an easy thing to steal.

* * *

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"

I smile as my brothers and now girlfriend Mori cheer for me. As of this day I am now seventeen years old, almost at adult age.

Mori pecks me on the cheek and my brothers start wolf howling at us. I redden a little but focus our attention on the giant cake Richard snuck into camp.

It's more than enough for twenty people, which makes it funny since there's only five of us in the cabin. Before I can blow the candles out there's a knock on the door. Joseph opens the door and his happy expression shatters off his face completely.

He steps to the side and Mother walks in.

She's dressed in a nice white and black striped shirt tucked into her red high waisted pants. Her hair is pulled into a bun and it takes all my willpower not to laugh. Gods she looks so much like a mom!

The room turns quiet as everyone freezes and looks at her. She rolls her eyes and snaps her fingers. A nice record player appears on my desk and starts playing smooth jazz.

"Close your mouths, boys, you'll catch and eat a fly. It's my favorite son's birthday party and I won't miss this."

We all start chattering again and soon enough the party is back to life. Mother walks over and sits next to me on my bed.

She turns to me and her stormy eyes lock into mine with curiosity sparkling in them, "I see you've acquired yourself a woman, Samson."

I blush and look away. She in turn chuckles at my flustered state. "She seems like a fine girl." She looks at Mori who is currently stuffing her face full of cake and smearing it all around her mouth, "Most definitely… interesting. For a Hecate daughter she is remarkably sane. I'd keep her around, Samson. Perhaps offer her a nice gift? Something that shows your affection."

Thoughts start to roll in my mind. Mother never says anything without there being a hidden meaning or implication. A nice gift, something meaningful? I'll be going on the quest in only a month, so what is it that I can offer as a sign of my affection?

Wait a minute… Something important and symbolizes eternity. I have the _perfect_ thing in mind. My eyes shine in excitement and Mother smiles fondly and wraps an arm around my shoulder.

"Excellent, you're a devoted lover. Although I didn't like you going to Artemis for advice, she still got the right idea across… sort of. You're making me a proud mother, Samson. I would like to offer you a position of sorts. After you complete your project, I would like for you to be the keeper of my temple in Olympus."

My head snaps up and I look at her incredulously. She wants me to live with her in Olympus? She looks at me with pride sparkling in her eyes, "You don't belong in the mortal world, you're much too important for the mundane nuances of humanity. You should appreciate this honor, I've never before offered my children this opportunity."

Hey eyes sparkle in joy, fear, gratitude, excitement? I'm almost overwhelmed, the chance to be with mother, to live in her home with her! How can I say no, she's my mother!

My voice croaks out, "I would love to, mother. I graciously accept your offer, upon completion I will be the caretaker of your temple."

She wraps her arms around me and holds me in a tight hug, "Excellent, you've proven yourself to be the smartest of my children. I will be seeing you soon, my son."

She places something into my hand, "This is my gift for you, it will be vital in dealing with Ladon."

Mother stands and flashes out in a bright light. Everyone stops and looks over, Thomas and Richard have disappointed looks on their faces and I realize mother only stopped here to see me. She never even talked to them,

They look at me with jealousy in their eyes and I turn my eyes away in shame. Joseph plops himself on the bed next to me and glares at my brothers. They quickly look away and start mingling with each other nervously.

Joseph leans back and bellows out, "Ah ignore them! Kids get jealous when a god favors someone else. I just want to give you a hint of warning, mother shuffles her favorites around every generation. Did you know I was hers once?"

I look at him, curiosity written all over my face. "If you don't mind me asking, but what happened? What happened between you, Artemis and mother?"

He sighs, "It was many years ago. Mother had sent me on a quest to retrieve her helm, Ares had his kid steal and hide it to mess with her. My brother and best friend joined me to go and get it back. We were in the woods of Wisconsin when we got attacked by an archer. She took us by surprise and injured us when Artemis showed up with her hunters. The lying bitch said we tried to rape her, and of course all women are angels so the goddess turned my brother and friend into rabbits."

Tears twinkle in the corners of his eyes, "She had her hounds rip them to shreds, the cries of my friends still ring in my ears. She was going to castrate me when an owl landed on my shoulder. Artemis saw this and let me go. After I returned ma's helm she gave me Athenos manor as a reward for a quest well done."

He turns to me, "That owl could have been sent the second Artemis arrived, mother could have saved her son and my best friend, but she didn't. Only me because I was her favorite, and she only needed one person to get her helmet back."

He pats me roughly on the back, "Loving mother is fine. All boys should love their moms, but I just can't anymore. Samson, you've done something no other demigod has done before, you made your godly parent truly love you. Enough for them to visit you in person on special occasions. Just keep in mind, Athena is a fickle goddess. With her, things are temporary, even her loved ones."

Joseph gets off the bed and leaves me alone with my thoughts. I want mother to love me, but should I really? Gods are eternal, and I am not. Soon enough I'll be dead and forgotten, and mother will carry on. I shouldn't be invested, but I love her too much.

She's my only parent left.

* * *

The days roll past, I trained more with Joseph and Mori taught me a few spells. Richard's business has been growing and Thomas has been hovering over me more. For being bat shit crazy he's a surprisingly gentle and careful soul. That makes it quite funny since he's one of the strongest fighters in camp. He's dueled and beaten every one of the Ares campers and even gave Joseph a run for his money. So, when he asked to be on my second quest I immediately said yes.

Mori elected herself to be on my quest as well, of which I had no complaints. She's one of the strongest demigods in camp as well. Her mastery of the mist and control over powerful spells makes her one of the feared demigods of our generation.

It was quite amusing to watch her thrash the hunters when they stopped by last month. Arrogant little children called her all sorts of nasty things when they found out about our relationship. Seeing their lieutenant turned into a jackalope by Mori made me laugh at the irony.

Unfortunately, Artemis was less than pleased and gave me a look that said 'really, her?' when she turned Zoe back into a human. I just shrugged my shoulders.

Anyways it's now time to start the second quest. We've packed our gear for the trip, Thomas spins his knives in excitement and Mori fidgets in excitement.

We lock hands and Mori pulls out the mirror I made for her. In a second the world is spinning wildy around us. Then in an instant it's over, and we're no longer in the dining pavilion of Camp Half Blood. We're standing inside of a fancy mirror shop off of a busy street way.

We leave the shop and walk around the busy and bustling streets of San Francisco. We look around for a moment and Thomas points out a large mountain off in the distance. Looking at it gives us a weird feeling, like it's covered by distorted glass.

After a second of focusing the image breaks and resting on top of the mountain is a massive and ruined fortress. It extends high in the sky and for a moment we all feel overwhelmed. We shake our heads and head to a bus stop.

We steel ourselves for the trip ahead, Mount Othrys is an unwelcoming place, and stealing Golden Apples of Immortality from their guardian is a most dangerous task.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Chapter 14 already. This will be a fun one to write, I'm doing something different this time around with Garden of the Hesperides. Should be an interesting chapter!**

* * *

 _With Samson, summer 1966_

This place, this mountain fortress place has a presence that I can't even describe fully in words. I don't use such black and white terms for things, but this place is _evil_.

Such malice and sorrow, it makes me want to curl up in a ball and cry. The things that live here, the nymphs and Satyrs must be surely mad by now. I can feel the taint of this place tugging at my mind.

The Mountain of Despair is a name well earned.

Mori grasps my hand with hers and our eyes meet. Both of us are scared, but together we can succeed. Thomas places a hand on my shoulder and gives me a lopsided grin. He's sweating and clearly uncomfortable. This place is so evil even Thomas is affected, we've got to get to the garden quick!

We start up the path towards the garden, we have a few hours until the sun begins to set and an hour's hike to the garden entrance. As we follow the path I notice the architecture, or at least the remnants of it. The crumbled stone towers and pillars are a sight to behold.

Everything is made out of this strange black marble. They glimmer in the light, making even the crumbled statues look beautiful and terrifying at the same time.

We walk for around half an hour when Mori stumbles to her knees behind me. I quickly spin around and run over to her side and help her back to her feet, "Mori! What's wrong? Are you okay?" She only mumbles something in response.

Thomas and I each take a shoulder and walker her over, and sit her down on a loose bit of rock. She's rubbing her temples with her fingers, "I'm fine, don't worry. It's just the amount of mist in this place. Mothers magic can be overwhelming to her children in places like this. Just-just give me a minute, once I get used to it I'll be fine."

She leans back against a pillar, closes her eyes and instantly dozes off. Thomas and I relax off to her sides, we can rest for a few minutes.

"Interesting little gathering you fellows have." Thomas and I are instantly on our feet, sword and knives sling to life as we spin around.

The Satyr, we note, bleats and cowers behind a tree. "Blaaaah! No weapons, puts them away!"

We don't and move to the sides of Mori whom is still passed out.

"Who in the Hades are you? Tell me or I'll run you through and let my brother make gyros out of you!"

He hisses and peeks around the tree he's hiding behind. Craggily is the best word to describe him. For a Satyr he has large and impressive ram horns, but they're heavily worn and cracked. His hair and fur are course and wild, almost like he hasn't bathed in months. His scent, even from here, seems to prove this thought.

He's wearing worn leather armor with a small knife strapped to his thigh. His teeth are crooked, and his eyes are an ugly shade of bloodshot yellow.

Dudes pretty fucking ugly.

"This one is named Tumnus, we fought for the Titans as a scout moons ago. Now we waits in the ruins, we waits for fresh ones. New friends."

Thomas and I share a look. Dude is sketchy as fuck, something is really wrong with this Satyr. "What about the Nymphs that served your masters? Aren't they lingering around here somewhere?"

He makes a strange tsking sound, almost like a swarm of bees.

"Cursed wenches! Foul harlots always makes fun of us! They like to trap us in roots and branches when we feel randy. No fun for our poor Satyr, only themselves!"

I scowl in disproval, then I nearly slice his head off in fury when I see him turn to look at Mori. I hear Thomas start spinning his knives in his hands, and I grip my sword tighter and the leather audibly croaks in my hand. Tumnus stops his peeking and cowers behind his tree more, seeming to try and blend in it like a Nymph.

"Watch where you look _beast_ , or I will take you to the highest standing tower and chuck you right off the edge!"

He whimpers and hides further in the old tree. "O-of course master! We's were only curious, never do we see beautiful maidens in these ruins."

I activate my swords fire and he cries out in shock. He tries to back pedal, but trips over the rubble and slams onto his rear.

"Wait, waits! We meant no offence! Beauty is a rarity in this mountain, we only wish to look!"

I put my boot on his chest and press down hard. He tries to reach for his knife but I slice his hand with my sword, the heat of the blade sizzling nasty in the wound as he cries in pain. I take the dagger from the strap and chuck it far away.

"I'll spare you once, but if I see you around us again you know what I'll do!" I step off and kick him hard in the side. Tumnus scrambles to his feet and makes off bleating in fear. He calls out through panicked gasps, "Watch your back halflings! We will get our revenge for your cruelty! Your bitch will be-"

He's cut off by a fireball blasting him in the ass and sending him tumbling down a stony hill.

I turn around and Mori's pointing her sword at the Satyr, her previous signs of weariness have faded away.

"Bloody bastard! Horny nature spirits don't get to talk about me like that!" Her sword vanishes, and she walks over to me and pecks me lightly on the cheek.

"Thanks for giving me a good target babe, I've always wanted to light someone's ass on fire!"

We snicker a little and Thomas gives us a sly grin.

"Now come on, boys. Let's get these apples before goat boy brings his friends!"

* * *

We start back up the path, the incline becoming steeper and more difficult as we have to traverse damaged steps and toppled pillars.

Eventually we reach a split in the path and follow the trail leading away from the true ruins. As pleasant as a trip to one of the evilest palaces on Gaea's green world, we all would prefer a trip to one of the most beautiful and serene gardens in existence.

We continue to hike for another thirty minutes, and our timing coincides perfectly with sundown. If we were too late of early we would never find the entrance, thankfully we were spot on, so the winding path and foliage parted to reveal a beautiful grove.

The trees reach high in the sky and almost twinkle in the fading sunlight. We quickly race into the trees so we don't miss our chance.

Most can't tell, but to enter the Garden you must pass through the trees that hide it from view. Usually you would wander through them and appear on the other side, but only at this time of the day would you be able to end up at the garden instead.

As we move forward a heavy mist starts seeping into the forest around us. Good, we're crossing the barrier.

We stop as four figures seem to faze into existence from the mist in front of us. Each of them is similar, nearly identical, with flowing black curls and caramel colored skin with volcanic black eyes.

Dear gods they are _gorgeous_. Mori slaps me hard in the back of my head and I mutter a quiet apology.

One steps forward, her chiton seems to flow in an invisible wind, "Heed our warnings and turn back demigods. This garden is not safe, and your kind are no longer welcomed here. Turn back lest you find yourselves inside the belly of Ladon!"

No tact in these ladies that's for sure! I heard in the tales that the Hesperides used to let men in the garden since they can't leave to meet any. Mori's going to hate me for this, but perhaps I can use their loneliness to our advantage.

I bow forward and try my hardest to be suave, "My ladies-" the words roll off my tongue smoothly, "It is an honor to make you acquaintances. The legends of your beauty failed to reach even a _portion_ of the reality!"

They seem unimpressed. The lead Nymph even raises an eyebrow and gives me a look that kills all my previous confidence. Mori places a reassuring hand on my shoulder, "You tried, tiger. You tried."

Thomas steps past us and approaches the Hesperides. They tense at his approach but don't otherwise flee. He makes a come-hither gesture with his finger and the lead lady leans down. Thomas whispers something in her ear and a mad blush rakes across her face as she gasps lightly.

She turns to her sisters and they start whispering amongst themselves. They start giggling like the Aphrodite campers as they take peeks at a grinning Thomas.

They all walk forward and surround Thomas and start leading him away into the fog. He leans back and gives Mori and me a lecherous wink as he disappears in the fog with the four ladies.

The fog then lifts and in front of is the most beautiful garden I have ever seen. Patches of flowers, some I've never even seen before, roll across the meadow for seemingly forever and up towards a small hill. On top of that hill is the most beautiful tree I have ever seen.

The bark is a deep brown and spirals high and branches off into a blooming pink canopy. Hanging in the branches are dozens of beautiful and agonizingly captivating shining golden apples. The scent draws me to them, but I stop myself and Mori.

Movement in our eyes alerts us to the massive beast wrapped around the tree like a snake. The thing is massive and unbelievably thick. It's wider than me in diameter, and it's snake body curls back around the tree into a massive swarm of slumbering python heads.

Suddenly the heads snap forward and they all stare directly at us. Their eyes glowing an angry orange and it almost feels like I'll die just by their glare.

Ladon as I now realize makes no attempt to approach us, his duty is to guard the tree -not chase demigods thirty yards away, but he does hiss angrily at us. The sound of a hundred snake heads hissing simultaneously makes goosebumps roll down my arms.

I steel my courage and slowly pull off my backpack and fish around in it, my eyes not once leaving Ladon's many glares. After a second my fingers brush a vial and I pull it out. It's clear with flowing clear liquid inside and an elaborate golden topper.

Mori opens her pack and pulls out a sealed back of raw goat meat. She opens the pack and hands me the flesh. I dribble a small amount of the liquid onto the meat, being very careful I don't splash some on my skin. If any touches me, then there's a good chance I'll never wake up again.

Ladon hisses angrily, clearly aggravated by the scent of blood. I toss the meat in the air at Ladon, and like a bullet the heads shoot out and in a second the meat is gone midair.

He goes back to glaring at us and for a moment all we do is stare at each other. About three minutes later loud gurgling comes from Ladon's gut and the heads start to sway. Several fall limp while others start drooping as the eyes start blinking sleepily.

Then the body goes limp and the heads slap quietly onto the floor, loud snoring starts flowing from his many noses.

Quickly and quietly I start tip-toeing around the back end of Ladon, Mori readies a spell in case hewakes up and she needs to cause a distraction. I start climbing up his body and freeze when he fidgets. He stops adjusting and falls still again, save for the rise and fall of his chest.

I wait a second, sweat falling down my face, to see if he wakes. He doesn't, and I resume my climb. I sneak to the bark and pull myself up the branches. I reach into the tree and pull down an apple and place it in my bag. I reach up again and take a take a second apple, doing the same with the first.

I slide back down the tree and off Ladon back onto the flowing luscious grass. Quickly sprinting I race back to Mori and collapse onto the ground, releasing the largest breath of air I could muster, the plan worked!

Mori sits back on the grass and starts laughing, "Holy _shit_! Babe, that was fucking CRAZY! What the hell did you feed the big lug? Ladon is one of the strongest monsters I know of, even Hercules couldn't get the drop on him!"

I lean up into a sitting position and pull out the vial so we both can look at it, "It was a gift from my mother. She gave it to me so I could use it against Ladon. This stuff is so strong it could put a _god_ to sleep for a year or so!"

Her eyes widen as she stares at the powerful liquid in my hand, "Well throw it away! I don't want anything that strong near us!"

I toss it behind me and Mori rests her head on my shoulder. We sit there for a few moments and enjoy each other's company, the cool air and the quiet serenity of the picturesque garden making us practically melt into the other.

"Hey, Mori?" My voice is quiet. She leans off my shoulder and looks at me, "Hmm, yes babe?"

I twiddle my thumbs nervously, "Do you love me?"

She tilts her head to the side, "Of course, silly. I love you so much, why else do you think I would help you on this quest?"

I reach into my pack and pull out the one of the golden apples. Her eyes widen at the sheer beauty of the simple fruit.

I turn to her and place it in her hands, "Mori, I love you more than anything. I want you to keep this apple as a symbol of our love; eternal and beautiful."

She looks at me incredulously as tears brim in her eyes, "Samson, I-I.."

"When we're ready, we'll split this apple together. That way we'll always be with each other, from then on and forever."

She pulls me hard into a hug and starts wailing into my ear, "Yesyesyesyesyeyes YES! I-I-I wil!"

Mori starts a sloppy make-out session with me whilst also plugging in random 'I love you' between breaths for air. She throws me onto the ground and our kissing progresses into intimate touching followed by a loss of clothes.

We make love in the world's most beautiful garden in the shadow of the world's most precious tree and next to one of the world's most deadly monsters.

Only demigods, as mother would say.

* * *

We must have dozed off after we were finished as the moon is now high in the sky. Gods I hope Artemis doesn't get pissed off at me for 'defiling' a sacred place.

Mori wakes up too and wraps a tender arm around me as we relax in the grass.

We sit there content with everything for a while before I break up the mood, "I suppose we should get dressed, I don't think Thomas can 'entertain' the Hesperides forever." She grumbles something angrily, and we start getting dressed.

I put my clothes on and help Mori find her undergarments somewhere. I was in the middle of helping her put her bra back on when a shrill screech pierced the silent meadow.

We spin around and see the Hesperides, of which I note they have the same afterglow Mori and me have, emerging from the forest and very much not appreciating our state of dress.

Thomas peeks from behind them and makes a silent 'uh oh' as he points at us. The nymphs reach into their bed wrangled hairs and pull something from them. Whatever they are quickly transform into shining celestial bronze Xiphos's.

The head nymph points at us, "Defilers! We let you into our garden and you dare stain it with thine taint!" Mori looks like she's about to throw a fireball, but chooses to put her camp shirt back on and finish buttoning her pants.

"You will die here demigods!"

The nymphs then charge at us with startling speed. In an instant the leader is on me slashing to take off my head.

Quickly I roll backwards and my sword springs to life from my ring. I look around quickly, but I can't find my silver jacket. Fuck! Now I'm unarmored without my shield and my dagger is in the grass somewhere.

I'm glad I have my pants on, so I have _some_ dignity in this fight, now if only my shirt was on too.

Lead Nymph quickly brings her sword around to stab my heart. I deflect with a hard strike from my cutlass that rattles her arm _hard_. Thank you, Joseph, for that strength training.

A Hesperide zooms behind me to slash my spine and I quickly twirl and catch it in the curved guard of my sword. I launch a hard kick that knocks the wind from her with an 'oof' as I send her tumbling backwards.

I duck a side swipe from the leader and slash her midriff with my sword. She cries as golden ichor pours from her wound, but quickly flurries her sword and cuts me deep in the side.

Blood gushes from my side and I dodge her follow up swing. She goes for a stab that I spin around and punch her hard in the cheek.

Godsdamn it feels like punching a wall, but I hit hard enough to send her to her feet. I quickly note Thomas and Mori fighting with the two other Hesperides.

I back pedal to put distance as the two laid out Nymphs levitate to their feet and face me, their volcanic eyes seeming to radiate pure hate from them as they face me.

With a blink they are on me unleashing a flurry of furious swipes and stabs. I deflect and parry each blow, my training from Joseph ensuring my survival as I push my reflexes to their max.

Loud tinkling and clanging echoes through the garden as we face off against the Hesperides. They are no light foes as they almost manage to overpower us. If we were ordinary demigods they would have cut us down long ago, but we're anything but ordinary.

Thomas ducks under a swing and quicky thrusts upwards, stabbing straight into the forearm of a Hesperide while also taking his second knife and driving it deep into her thigh, gold blood pooling from her as she cries and falls to the floor in pain. He thankfully stays his blade as she weeps on the gold stained flowers.

Mori deflects a blow from her Nymph and grabs her sword wrist with her hand. Smoke steams from her wrist as hot air burns third degree into the Hesperide's arm. She screams in agony as her arm is cook and drops her sword and falls to her knees. Mori takes mercy and slams her cutlass pommel into her temple, knocking the daughter of Atlas out cold.

She crumples to the ground and Mori races to my side and helps me face the last two Hesperides. Thomas stays behind to help his Nymph tie her wounds. Mori hands me a piece of ambrosia and the relief quickly washes away the pain as the wound in my side starts to close. The two Hesperides exchange a nervous look but turn and continue our fight.

Mori and I trade blows and parries with the remaining Nymphs. In a blur of speed we cross blades until I find an opening and duck under a slash and kick the lead Nymph in her wound and send her to her knees. With her out of the way we focus on the very last Hesperide. Sweat trickles down her face as she breathes raggedly.

Her sword shakes in her grip from a combination of exhaustion and fear. Her eyes harden as she steels her courage and charges at us. Her movements are slow and pained, so Mori and I sidestep her, each making a deep gash as we bring our swords through the sides of her waist.

She slams to the ground as her ichor seeps out of her wounds in a torrent of blood. We cut deep but didn't bisect her, these Nymphs are sacred and killing them is out of the question.

I look at Mori then direct her gaze to the fallen Nymph. She nods and kneels by her side, yellow magic flowing from her finger tips as she sets to work healing the thankfully asleep Hesperide.

I turn and face my foe as she tries and fails to rise past her kneeling.

"P-please…" She coughs out as ichor drips from her lip, "Have mercy,-" HACK "-let us be. Take what you need and leave us."

I give her a stern look and she shrinks under my glare, "Swear upon the Styx to tell no one of what happened here. Swear and I will spare you. If not, then the Olympians themselves will not stop me from throwing your sorry asses into the sea!"

Her eyes widen in fear, but accepts her loss regardless, "I, on the honor of the Styx, swear to tell none of what transpired this day. Nor will I tell any of whom came here."

Thunder rolls off in the distance and I nod and lower my sword. She drops her head in shame and refuses to raise it until I leave.

I give her one last passing glance and move past her to gather the rest of my discarded items. After a few minutes I find everything and dress, then move to help Mori find her missing items.

I takes a minute, but I find her trench coat thrown over Ladon's many heads. I freeze when I see where it went and look at Mori. She gives me a sly smile and shoos me away. I groan and sneak over to the monster whom slept peacefully through the battle.

I snatch her coat, and like a bat out of Tartarus my ass is back with my companions.

Thomas passes his gaze between Mori and me, a shit eating grin on his face as he silently asks us 'what were _you_ two _doing_?'.

We respond back with our own knowing look. Seriously? Four Nymphs? He shrugs and doesn't even have the audacity to try and look embarrassed. Instead nothing but pride is written all over his face.

The Hesperides have stitched and covered up their wounds in the few minutes we spent finding our shit. They look at us one last time, silent frustration is practically radiating off of them before the disappear in a puff of mist.

I hear one mention 'this wouldn't have happened if papa was here!' and that gives me a fun idea. I look over at Mori and Thomas, "Hey guys, want to take a picture?"

They look at me and Mori pipes up, "What of?"

* * *

Holy. Shit. Atlas is a freaking MAN. This dude is huge and jacked! He's at least eight feet tall, and his stature and the shadows rolling across him gives the impression of a monster about to gobble you up.

So the fact that he's wearing a _painfully_ false smile on his face and talking in a tone _far_ too gentle for a man this size makes it all the more funny and disturbing at the same time. His demeanor and torn chiton gives him the impression of a childhood monster rather than the second strongest Titan ever.

"Hello, _children_! I'm your uncle Atlas, think you could do be a favor and hold this for me right quick? I haven't been able to stretch in a while ha-ha!"

He fake laughs at us, but the desperation in his eyes almost makes me sympathetic. Keyword, almost. I look at Mori and Thomas, and an evil grin appears on our faces.

Mori calls out in a stupidly sweet voice, "Awww, but Aaaaatlas I don't wanna!" Her voice is unbelievably childish.

Atlas's eyebrow twitches, "Now sweetie, it's only for a moment, so please TAKE THE SKY!"

She snorts and walks over and starts poking Atlas in his biceps while Thomas starts doing pull ups on his other arm. "Babe! Come over here and feel this dudes arms! They're made of concrete or something!"

Atlas beams in pride but quickly remembers what he's trying to do, "Please! Children, enough fooling around now. Take the sky for me and I promise I won't RIP YOUR HEADS OFF- I mean I'll give you all something sweet, okay?"

Holy Zeus this guy is desperate. I go over by Mori and start feeling his arms. Damn, that does feel like concrete! Guess I know where the Hesperides get it from.

Thomas hangs off Atlas's neck and starts drawing on his face while he squirms in discomfort.

"Blah! Bah! STOP THIS! Children, cease this foolishness right now! Leave me be or I will tell Hera of your trespassing here!"

Thomas stops drawing and pulls himself so close to Atlas's face they're only inches apart. The look in Thomas's eye makes Atlas sweat in nervousness as he leans in close and begins to whisper, "…go ahead… call her… she'll never come… she'll never _hear_ you…"

…okay then. Thomas jumps off Atlas and pulls a camera and Tripod from his backpack. He sets them up about twenty feet away and sets up a timer. We race over and quickly pose in front of Atlas.

The camera clicks, and the picture taken is one I'll remember for years to come. Thomas sits on Atlas's shoulders, I'm hanging off his right arm like I'm doing a pullup, and Mori swoons off his left leg like she's a poll dancer.

And Atlas, the man himself is screaming red in rage, his anger and promises of pain stored forever in a silly colored photo with three little shits for demigods hanging off his trapped body.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: It's chapter 15! Woohoo, getting pretty far with this story now. Last chapter seemed easy, but in this one we'll see that not everything is as it seems. Hehehe this is going to be a pretty fun one. Hope everyone wasn't disappointed they fought the Hesperides last chapter, but Ladon is way beyond demigods, Hercules couldn't defeat him, but he can be out-thought!**

* * *

 _With Samson, Summer 1966_

Gods we're little shits. For about fifteen minutes Mori, Thomas and myself were dicking around with Atlas in his little arena stadium thing. Pissing off a Titan when he can't hurt you in any kind of way is probably one of the funniest things I've done this year.

Eventually we got bored and left, the whole way back to the garden Atlas was yelling and cursing at us. Things like broken faces, missing eyeballs and disembowelment.

Charming fellow.

Back down the dreary path the garden soon comes back in view. Peeking around the side of the twisted corner I see Ladon is still passed out. Phew, thank the gods for that. We hug the wall behind us and quickly tip toe past the monster.

The Hesperides are nowhere in sight when we get past Ladon, thankfully for the last time, and I wonder where they would go?

I really hope the oath I had them swore is enough, stealing Golden Apples without a special quest given by a god is a one-way ticket to having your behind thrown into Tartarus, and I don't believe this quest has the proper backing Hercules did all those thousands of years ago!

We set up in the clearing near the forest. I nod at Mori and she nods back at me. Reaching into her coat she pulls out a card and tosses it on the ground in front of us.

It explodes in a puff of smoke and where the card once was is now a large cauldron. Mori snaps her fingers, and her signature blue flames explode underneath and start heating the cauldron.

I take off my backpack and start rummaging through it for my special supplies. Thomas peeks over my shoulder and into my bag.

" _Within the darkness we peek? What was lost is now to be found, greatness is thine reward?_ "

Thomas takes the vials I start handing him and he passes them along to Mori whom starts pouring them into the cauldron.

"Correct, to empower this new item simple enchanting isn't enough. There's power in sacrifices, and doing so with something of divine energy can be used to great effect. With this solution I'm making I'll imbue the energy into my silver jacket. This will be the sister piece to Oculus and its enchantments should provide the user with protection against curses and indirect magic, mundane or divine."

He nods in respect as a look of appreciation and impression forms on his face.

" _Heinous and vainglorious. True is Michelangelo, proud is Da Vinci._ Cool thing bro."

I do a couple double takes at that last part. Thomas never speaks regular English, he likes his Lovecraftian madman speech, he thinks it's funny.

I pull out the Golden Apple I kept and take my jacket off and walk over to the cauldron. The liquid is a silver boiling mass of liquid, and I drop the apple in carefully. The mixture begins glowing fiercely, as if someone threw a mini sun in it.

Mori points her hands and blueish wafts of light spill from her hands and into the pot. I grab my necklace with one hand and do the same as Mori with my other.

Pressure builds in my ears until all I can hear is the fizzling and crackling of the potion. Taking my jacket, I walk carefully closer to the cauldron as brilliant light pours from it. I drop my jacket in the mixture and the world explodes into white light so bright I go blind and deaf for at least a full minute.

Everything is white, but eventually it clears as my ears start ringing loudly. My vision is foggy for a moment before my sight sharpens and I can see fine enough again. The ringing has faded some and soon I can hear again.

I look around and blink my eyes to clear the spots out, Mori and Thomas doing the same.

"Babe, holy. Fucking. Shit! What in the actual hell was that?!"

I rub my eyes with my knuckles, "Well, magic is a weird thing. It can't be special if something doesn't explode and make you go blind."

She looks away and ponders that, and I look to what was once the cauldron, now only the remains of twisted and melted metal.

I kick the pieces and fog away and retrieve my jacket from the ground. It glows a bright silver like the whole material is solid light before fading, and my jacket returns to its normal reflective fabric.

Putting it on I can feel the power flowing through the fabric and strengthening myself. I'm pretty godsdamn glad I can use this independently from Oculus, this one doesn't require anything else to be put to use.

Mori gasps as she looks at the silver jacket, now called Juggernaut, that I'm wearing.

"Samson, holy shit! You're practically radiant in that, I've never felt anything so-so _divine_ come from a demigod before! You almost feel like mother, sorcery is practically bleeding off of you!"

Thomas pipes in, " _Hail to the new god, power and sovereignty. Immutable and beautiful!"_

I blush at the attention and compliments, I'm happy my new tool has such a good effect on people. Plus being called radiant and divine make me all fuzzy, flattery has always been my weakness.

Mori walks over and gently starts rubbing her hand along the fabric of Juggernaut, cooing silently to herself as she likely feels the magic imbued into it. Hecate children have a natural ability to sense magic, and whatever she's feeling must be special since she's practically hypnotized!

My heart flutters a little as she fawns over my jacket and by extension me. Thomas raises his eyebrow at us and I shoot him a glare. He just smirks, and I roll my eyes and shake Mori out of her trance.

She blinks a few times, "Wha-what? Oh, hey guys. Did we get the thing?"

Thomas says some babble that some how equates to yes and they start down the path, "Come on, babe! We gotta get out of here before the Nymphs come back or fat-boy over there wakes up!"

Then they're gone and I'm left wondering what the hell is happening.

* * *

It took us an hour, but we finally found our way out of the mist surrounding Mount Othrys and back to the regular mountain.

I didn't notice anything following us, but I had a feeling of something being off. I can't tell if it's just my nerves being frazzled from being in such an evil place, or if my demigod senses were trying to warn me of something.

"Hey, babe?" Mori asks from behind me as we board a shuttle back to the city, "Can we stay here for a few days? I've never been to San Francisco and I really want to see the sights!"

I look back at Thomas and he grins and nods at me. I open my wallet and count my bills, five hundred dollars. "I should have enough money to last us. Okay, a few days' vacation sounds fun, I don't think anything bad will happen at camp. Let's go find a motel or something."

Mori cheers and gives me a smooch on the cheek. Gods, I think she's playing me by being so sweet. Oh well, I love it anyways!

It took us a minute, but we find a nice enough motel to stay in for the weekend. It smelled only a _little_ bit like cigarettes and sex, but it was cheap and the prostitutes in the alley were really nice.

 _Shar-pei_ and _Angel Wings_ told us about some really nice places to visit as tourists. They also told Mori 'Use them curves while you got them, make good cash for a few years'. We thanked them kindly then skedaddled right back to our room.

I'm glad Mori kept Thomas and myself calm, we just about killed two hookers that night! Oh well, they can live since dealing with dead mortals is a hassle.

* * *

I woke up late the next morning and holy _fuck_ I have a splitting headache.

"Samson, what's wrong?"

That's Mori I think. Gods it's hard to think right now. It feels like when I used my powers to grab the club from the Laestrygonian last year.

I mumble some words, I don't even what I said. Mori turn over and places a gentle hand on my forehead. Relief immediately floods into my head as she uses some form of spell on me.

I sit up and look at Mori, she has a worried expression.

"Babe, I think someone tried to curse you."

I rub my eyes to clear them up, "Curse? Did they actually do it, will I be okay?"

"I felt around in your head, there's no malicious magic. Whomever tried the curse either is too weak or you were too strong and it backfired. You'll be okay, I'm more worried about the fact someone wants to harm you this way!"

I think back on past events and try and sort through the list of things I've pissed off. Who would try a curse, who has the power to even use cursing magic? I spend a couple seconds in thought, then it all clicks into place.

It was that fucking Satyr.

"I think I know who it was. It must've been that Satyr you shot with a fireball, he probably lived and tried to curse me or something."

She mulls over my revelation, "It would make sense why he failed then, nature spirits can't use cursing magic as well Hecate demigods can. I wouldn't be surprised if he gave you a blessing on accident instead!"

"Wow, what blessing did I get then?"

She shakes her head, "I can't tell you that. Only something like a Nymph or another Satyr could tell you. Nature magic is out of my area of expertise."

Mori kisses my forehead as she gets up and starts dressing for the day. Thomas is in the room next to us, by choice thankfully. It would be hard for us to bang with him in the same room as us.

I start getting dressed too and preparing my gear in case of a random monster attack or a vengeful Satyr.

* * *

We all took a taxi to Nordstrom and had it drop us off at this relatively new mall called the Stonestown Galleria. It was built in the fifties and was one of the places the prostitutes told us to visit.

The mall was fairly busy when we got there, even if it was early in the morning. People of all kind tumbled in and out of stores, women wore fancy summer clothes and men lumbered after them with large amounts of stacked boxes.

We look at each other before piling in and following the flow of people from store to store.

For the next couple of hours we browse and buy crap we don't need. Mori buys an expensive new tan leather mackintosh (with my money, of course), and Thomas finds himself the most expensive pair of boots you can find, which I also pay for too.

I stopped by the ophthalmologist booth and grabbed a pair of glasses for myself, my vision has gotten pretty bad after being blinded by the light that flashed when Juggernaut was enchanted. It's going to be embarrassing to tell mother I have to wear glasses because my enchanting is too bright!

After picking out a nice pair of glasses, Mori drags us to the food court and we all picked out meals and plop down on a nice and cozy solid wood booth.

Yeah, they really suck to sit in.

We all eat and chat for a while and everything feels fine, mundane even. But, that feeling I had back at the mountain is still nagging at my mind, like something is about to happen. Mori is mid-sentence about a crazy story of her first spell when she stops and seems disturbed by something.

"Sweetie, is everything okay?"

She looks around as a chill of some kind breezes into the food court. I look around as goosebumps pop up on my skin.

Everything is quiet, and all the people in the mall seem to have frozen in place. Food and drinks drip from the hands of some while others have stopped right in the middle of their activities.

All of their faces are expressionless, but something else causes my heart to beat in mild panic. A pressure settles over us as I swear I hear a faint chuckle somewhere deep in the halls of the shopping center.

Suddenly everyone stands at attention and turns so they're all looking at us. Dozens of shoppers, young, old, children and teens all leer at us.

I look at their eyes and see faint glowing red lights shining in them. We all stand and bring our weapons to our hands.

Mori whispers over her shoulder at me, "They're under a spell of some kind. Something's brain washing them!"

My eyes dart between the people surrounding us, "Can you do anything? Is there some spell that can reverse this?"

She shakes her head, "I can't undo something this strong! Whomever cast the spell to control this many people is too strong for me to fight myself. I would need more than two magic users to break the spell!"

Shit! Okay, Samson, Think! There's no way the Satyr did this, so who else?

Before I can think more, the hypnotized people all simultaneously point at us and scream in some kind of shrill cry. Then in an instant they charge us.

I punch an old lady out of my way. "RUN!" I scream, and Mori and Thomas follow me as I clear a path through the charging crowd.

We push our way through their clawing hands and one yanks hard as they grasp my back pack. I struggle for a second before I slip it off and kick the man away.

Mori waves her hand behind us and a shimmering wall of blue light appears behind us. The zombies, as I now call the hypnotized humans, slam into the wall like it's a solid object. We keep running forward as they start smashing hard into the barrier.

We run down a hall and follow it towards one of the exits, knocking several people out of our way as we make our way through. Thomas at one point kicks a small child through a glass display, thankfully the child was unharmed as they claw their way out and resumes chasing us.

Suddenly around the corner a massive crowd of zombies appear and force us to retreat back the way we came.

The crowd stopped with her magic cuts us off before we get far the other way, effectively trapping us between two masses of murderous hypnotized humans.

Mori waves her hand and dark tendrils erupt from the ground and form a net in front of one crowd. I extend my hand and a blast of faint light knocks the opposite crowd to their feet. Mori then uses the same spell again to erect another wall of magic vines in front of the zombies rise I knocked over as they rise to their feet.

Mori, Thomas and I stand with our backs to each other as the enraged humans struggle against the barriers, saliva spills from their mouths as their evil red eyes glare at us in hate.

Sweat trickles down my brow as we face the struggling masses.

"Samson, -" Mori calls over the screams, "-pray to your mother! She might help us!"

Will she, though? Gods are very neglectful of demigods during quests. Well, it can't hurt to try I suppose.

 _Mother, help us. Please!_

Nothing happens. Fuck! Ladon must've been the only help she's going to give me!

Thomas shakes my shoulder and points at the magic vines, they're starting to tear! Many hands start tugging hard on the tendrils, many of which start ripping under the strength of dozens of people.

The same is true on the opposite wall too. I hear a faint whine far in the distance, but it's over powered by the rabid cries of over a hundred zombies.

Mori and I raise our hands and a shimmering silver bubble encloses over us. The magic vines snap and disappear, then the crowds rush forward and slam into the barrier Mori and I made.

They pound furiously on the barrier and we struggle to keep our magic bubble from failing. I hear the whining again, much closer this time. Wait, that's not whining. It's neighing!

"Mori!" She grunts to acknowledge me, "On the count of three we need to make this bubble explode!"

She gives me a questioning look. "Just do it, we have help!" Mori nods and we pour more magic into the barrier.

"Okay, one!"

Thomas's muscles tighten as he readies to fight and protect his friends.

"Two!"

Mori's eyes focus and glow faintly as she focuses her powers and lets the magic saturate her body.

"Three!"

I snap as power erupts from my necklace and combines with Mori's magic. The bubble pops with a deafening CRACK as sizzling air blasts the zombies far back and away from us.

A large form leaps over the toppled bodies and lands to a stop in front of us. We eye the beast, and I recognize the deep brown coat and flowing black mane.

It's Horse!

The massive Shire breed horse does a small bow as he drops down so we can mount his back. We quickly climb onto him as he rises to his full seven-and-a-half-foot height and starts racing down the hallway, carefully avoiding trampling innocent people.

As we races for the door his pretty blue eyes glow a fiery red as smoke streams from his mouth and nostrils. Fire then erupts from his mouth and slams into the doors, blowing a massive hole big enough for him to run through unabated.

He clops through the parking lot as possessed humans start racing out of the mall and chasing us. I grab Horse's reins and snap them; his trot turns into a full out sprint as he races through the streets at highway speeds!

I can't help myself from cackling like a maniac as we tear through the streets far quicker than any horse should be able to. Memories flood my mind as I think back to Steven and William, we did this once on our first quest.

My joy fades as tears slip down my cheeks. Guess I'm not actually over their death at all. Mori wraps her arms around my waist and holds herself tight against me, her touch helps my sorrowful mood turn brighter. I swear I feel my dead brothers' touch on my shoulders for a second, but I quickly shake the thought away and turn my attention back to the road and lead us back towards the motel.

* * *

Forty minutes later we're back in the parking lot of our motel. We slide off Horse's back and look at him. I then turn and ask Mori, "Is there some way we can shrink him? He's too big to follow us around in the city."

Mori thinks for a second then snaps her fingers, "I've got something!"

She points at Horse and swirling mist then wraps around him like a cloudy tornado. It disperses after a second to reveal the he's been shrunk down and turned into the goofiest and most adorable mini horse I've ever seen!

"Oh my gods!" I gush, "He's so adorable!"

" _You best watch your mouth you little fookin twat! I'm a purebred fire horse, I'm not adorable! I'm fookin deadly!"_

A heavy Irish accent graces my ears and I look around to see where it came from. Mori and Thomas gives me strange looks as I fail to find the voice.

Suddenly it speaks up again, " _Well, what do ya know! Got the blessing of the wild there, looks like you can understand me now!"_

It takes a second before I realize it, "Horse?"

The pony neighs, " _Took ya long enough ya absolute dodger! For a smarty boy ya sure are farkin dumb!"_

"Excuse me?! Who the _fuck_ are you calling dumb!" I scream at Horse.

Mori places a worried hand over mine, "Samson, honey, I think you should go lay down. You're yelling at a horse."

"He's being an asshole, he called me dumb!"

Her face scrunches in confusion, "He _talked_ to you?" Realization crosses her face, "Oh! The blessing from the Satyr, babe, you can talk to animals!"

Holy shit, that's simultaneously cool and worrying at the same time. Am I going to get into an argument with animals in public?

" _Oi! I'm fookin thirsty, someone get me a cola!"_

"You're a horse, you don't drink soda. You get to drink water."

" _Fook. You!"_

I roll my eyes as Thomas starts chuckling at me. We move back into the room Mori and I slept in, Horse following us inside and complaining about asinine things.

We all rest on the beds as Mori starts, "Okay, first thing. Horsey, thank you for saving us."

" _Twas a pleasure, mylady, but the lads mama is the one you should be thankin, she's who sent me!"_

I heard him perfectly fine, but to everyone else all they heard was; _neigh, neigh, neigh!_

Mori coughs awkwardly, "Anyways… Samson, we lost your mirror. We can't teleport back, so what's the alternative."

I think for a second, "We take the trains, few stops, and it crosses the country faster than highways. Flying is risky since Zeus is still pissed about the riots in Olympus. We need to move quickly, if whomever is after us figures out where we're at we'll be serious danger!"

Thomas peeks outside the window and his face hardens, " _Woe to our foe. Here, now!"_

I race over and peek through the blinds. There's six figures waiting outside.

"Yoo-hoo! Godlings, come outside please!" A sweet voice yells at us from outside. That voice, it's strikingly familiar. No... it couldn't be!

I look back at my companions and nod, they nod back and prepare their weapons. Horse says he wants to stay inside since it's hot outside. How a fire-proof horse gets hot, I'll never know.

Thomas opens the door and we pool outside and face the intruders. I now see that five of them are beautiful women in brightly colored sundresses and hats. The last one, however, is something completely different. It's the creepy fucking Satyr from the mountain!

"We were rights, mistress. We's found them, yes we haves!"

The woman in the bright red outfit pats his head sweetly, "Yes you have, darling, now run along. You'll get your reward later!"

He goes to argue but she snaps before he can even speak, "GO!"

Tumnus quickly scampers away, if he had a dog's tail it would be tucked far between his legs. I look at the woman as she smiles sickly at us. Her hair is a startling raven black, and her eyes are strikingly green, almost like Mori's.

Then it all comes back to me why she's so familiar, she's the woman from my dream!

Her eyes sharpen, and that sick smile widens as she reads the realization on my face, "Glad you remember me, dear! Name's Laila, I thought you had forgotten all about me! Daisy was quite happy to have you inside her, you know?"

Mori gasps accusingly and looks sharply at me. I snap my head to her, "Mori, it's not what it sounds like! She's trying to mess with us, I _swear_!"

Her eyes tell me she trusts me, but they also tell me ' _we will talk about this'_.

"Ah, young love! Such a shame you took _her_ as your mate, Daisy here is such a better woman!"

We don't fall for her trap this time. The woman's cheery charade drops as her pupils split like a snake.

"Fine! No time for chatting, I'll kill you here and now for killing our mother!"

Laila snarls as sharp, needle like teeth fill her mouth.

Sick green flame belches from her mouth, I quickly extend my hand and a silver bubble pops into existence and blocks the fire as it wafts over, leaving us completely untouched

The head lamia hisses and swords appear in all of their hands. Then they charge at us. I disperse my bubble and parry Laila's stab.

I summon my shield and quickly jab her hard in the gut. She gasps and is thrown back and almost slams into one of her sisters. She dodged Laila and quickly vanishes before appearing around my side. She screeches and raises her sword high in the air with the intent of cleaving me in two.

Before I can stab her a sword pierces her chest from behind. She gasps in fear and quickly turns into gold dust and reveals one of her other sisters delivered the killing blow.

She looks at me as she breathes heavily, fear written all over her face. It takes a second but I remember her face, it's Daisy!

One of the lamia screams traitor and launches fire at us, Daisy throws her own and cancels it before it reaches us.

Thomas then rolls between her legs, slashing her heels as he does and she screams as she falls to her back. In a second Thomas rolls on top of her and pins her arms down with his knees. In a flash his daggers start carving into her face as she _shrieks_ in fear in pain.

After an unnecessarily long time she eventually dies. Thomas rises and starts giggling as he stares down another lamia. They shake in fear and quickly puff away in green mist.

"Cowards!" Laila screams and charges Thomas. He grins ferally and tackles her to her feet. He stabs her in the shoulder, but she kicks him off of her and through our motel window.

Laila rises to her feet again but doesn't try anything. Dark blood stains her dress as she shakes in rage, her hateful eyes seeming to try and light us ablaze.

She growls in fury before she too disappears in a puff of green smoke.

Daisy turns to say something to me but is quickly laid out by a nasty punch from Mori and slams hard into the concrete.

"Mori, wait! She saved me, she might know something!"

Mori growls, but doesn't slit Daisy's throat with her scimitar. She then looks to me and asks curtly, "Explain."

"She's a lamia, but she just killed one of her sisters. She might be willing to help us!"

Daisy tries to rise to her feet, but Mori stomps her hard in the chest and pins her down, "And _you_! Why did your sister say my boyfriend knew you? That he was _inside_ you?!"

Daisy's voice is perky and high pitched as she responds like it was something everyone just knew, "Well, he _was_ inside of me."

Mori's face turns red as she turns and looks at me, her fury is practically overwhelming me as I try my hardest to ignore my empathy powers. She is seething when she finally grits out, "Samson… what. The. FUCK!"

I raise my hands, "Babe wait, it was like a psychic mind thing! I possessed her or something, I can't control where my dreams take me!"

My eyes drift to Daisy but Mori gets even madder, "You're looking at her, WHY ARE YOU LOOKING AT HER!"

"Mori, I didn't cheat on you! I'm only worried because she's our informant about the fucking lamia we just fought!"

Mori's silent for a minute, "Did you enjoy being inside her?"

"What?"

"Did you enjoy it?!"

"Babe, I told you! I don't control my dreams!"

"You're stalling!"

Thomas is back with us, and he's thoroughly enjoying this bizarre fucking conversation as he sips a water bottle he got from… somewhere.

"Sweetie, I didn't like it! She has a really shitty home life!"

"He's right, I really do." Daisy shrinks when Mori sends her a quick glare.

"Don't make excuse! The only girl you get to be in is ME!"

Thomas chokes on his water as he looks at us.

I turn to him and try and control what little shred of dignity I have left, "It's not what you think."

"EXCUSE ME!" Mori shrieks at me.

"No, babe, it's exactly what you think!"

We all give each other confused looks. What the actual fuck is going on right now?

"I'm confused, -" Daisy pipes in, "did you enjoy being inside me or not?"

"SHUT UP!" Mori and I yell back in response at the same time. Daisy tries to melt into the concrete more.

Thomas taps my shoulder and I look at him. He wiggles his eyebrows suggestively and I blush furiously at his insinuation.

"No! I didn't do _'weird stuff',_ I'm not a fucking pervert!"

Mori's much calmer now as she looks at me with a sly expression on her face, "I would've, don't know why you didn't!"

Daisy goes next, "Me too, honestly. That's like, everyone's dream!"

I groan loudly into my hands. What the actual fuck is wrong with everyone today!

" _They're right, lad. Ya missed an opportunity!"_

"SHUT THE FUCK UP HORSE!"

"…wait, you actually named him 'Horse'?"


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Can you believe it? Chapter 16! This one cools down a little bit and we see the special connection Mori and Samson have. Gotta have love in a Greek quest! No real action this chapter, but characters don't always get developed fighting shit. Here's the start of the adventure crew!**

* * *

 _With Samson, summer 1966_

"Shut up! It's not that fucking funny!"

"Oh, then why am I still laughing?!"

"Gah! Mori, you're embarrassing me!"

"Samson, I didn't have to do anything! This is all your fault this time!"

"Ha! You suck!"

"Daisy, say that to my boyfriend again and rip your tits off!"

"Eep!"

Gods, why does this weird shit always happen to me?! Mori's been laughing her ass off for the past minute when she learned I never gave Horse a proper name.

Daisy is still being foot smashed into the ground right now. Mori doesn't really like her, I don't know why, she's a nice enough person -monster? She's a total ditz though, completely aloof to pretty much everything. Things like say an angry girlfriend and a psychotic younger brother.

" _Ya know laddie, I like the name. I think it's even kinda' funny."_

"Thank you, Horse. At least _someone_ isn't being an ass right now!"

Mori lets her foot off Daisy and walks over to me and puts me in a playful headlock. She gives me a little noogie, "Oh calm down babe! I'm only just joking, I'm soooory!"

She draws out her apology in a comically long fashion and starts shaking me a little. I can't help but smile at her sweetness, she's just too freaking cute! I know she's totally tugging at my heart strings, acting super cutsie and all that.

Mori lets me go and gives me a peck on my forehead, "Okay, so, babe? What are we gonna do with, -" She points at Daisy who waves at us, still lying down on the concrete. "- that?"

We both look at Daisy and she gives us a curious stare. Mori and I raise an eyebrow and she finally seems to take a hint. She gets up to her feet and looks at us expectantly, rocking back and forth on her heels as she does.

Mori gives me a look and I catch her meaning, one of the other lamia would've been much better to interrogate than this awkward sack of goofiness and love.

I clear my throat and Daisy turns to me, "Alright, Daisy, do –" "Yes?" "-Please don't interrupt. Anyways do you –" "Oh! I'm sorry!"

Is my eyebrow twitching? I reach a hand up, yup, totally twitching. Okay. Deep breaths, calm down. She's just an idiot, maybe even brain damaged. Mori massages my shoulders and her touch helps calm me down.

"Okay, Daisy, what do you know? Critical information, how many lamia are there? What are their weaknesses that we can exploit?"

She looks away in thought and cups her chin with her hand. We wait for several moments while she mulls over _hopefully_ important information. Thomas starts munching on a sandwich he somehow still has from the cafeteria at the mall.

Daisy clicks her fingers and looks back at me with excitement written on her face, "I don't know!"

I stare at her dumbfound while she just smiles back. Mori keeps massaging my shoulders and I'm thankful for that, I think it's what's keeping me from wringing Daisy's neck out!

My voice is calm, forcefully so when I finally respond, "What do you mean 'you don't know', they're your sisters! You're a lamia, how can you NOT know your own weakness?"

She scratches the side of her head and, thankfully, seems sheepish about her idiocy, "They never really told me things. Laila said they couldn't since I'm a blabbermouth and I'd say something to someone."

Mori gives her a weird look, "I can see why."

Daisy just grins dumbly, "I know right?"

I groan into my hands and Mori whispers over my shoulder into my ear, "Can we just kill her then? She doesn't know anything."

Her reasons are pretty understandable, but it would be wrong to kill her, even if she's technically a monster.

"Sweetie, we can't. She helped me, it's only fair we return the favor."

"Babe, she's _literally_ a monster." Mori deadpans, "Our purpose on this world almost exclusively is to kill things like her."

I sigh despondently, "It's a morality thing… I think? Mori, who's the monster in this situation? The 'evil' thing, or the killer who slays someone who helps them?"

Now it's Mori's turn to stare at me dumbly, "…Babe shut the fuck up. I'm the monster, I literally don't care."

I just stare at her blankly and she rolls her eyes and relents to my point. Mori looks over at Thomas and nods curtly. He salutes her then disappears inside the office room of our motel.

Peaking an eyebrow, I look back at Mori. She gives me a wink and walks over to Daisy.

"Because my boyfriend is a _generous_ man, I'll let you live and travel with us. Any sign of trouble from you and I'll turn you into a frog and boil you alive!"

Zeus's balls Mori! There's no need to terrify her this much!

Daisy pulls Mori into a cheerful hug and squeals, "ThankyouThankyouThankyou! I've always wanted to have friends, this is so cool! Oh I promise I'll be super helpful! Want to talk about things? Like boys, girls maybe?!"

Mori hesitantly removes Daisy's arms, but her furrowing brow tells me she's a second away from clawing Daisy's eyes out.

"… Sure thing, _p_ - _pal_ , let's just go… _now_!"

I look to Mori, "How should we leave then? We could ride Horse, he's more than big enough for all of us to ride on."

She gives me a sad look, "Babe, listen, I know you want to ride on your… _horse_ more. But I'm not riding on a horse for weeks! We'll take the train or something, it _was_ your idea after all."

Damn, she caught me. Oh well, a few days travel by trains is almost certainly much more comfortable than traveling twice as long on horseback!

We hear loud crashing from the receptionist office. After a second Thomas walks out grinning like an idiot as he spins car keys in his finger. Oh lord, what did he do? Is that… blood on his knuckles? Fucks sake did he just rob someone for their car!

Mori has the decency to at least look a little sheepish, "Yeaaaah… that's my bad. I told him to get us a ride, probably should have told him not to steal it _directly_ from someone."

I groan and rub my temples; can anything go right on these fucking quests?! I hold out my hand and Thomas drop the keys in them. His stupid ass smile makes me want to lock him in the trunk of the car on the way to the train station!

His eyes become hopeful for some reason. Does he think I actually will? Hmm, maybe, just maybe.

It takes us a second, but eventually we find the car Thomas stole the keys to. It's a nice and shiny black Cadillac. Daaaamn, the owner must've just bought this. Now I wonder…

"Mori? Do you have any empty mistform cards?"

She looks at me with a mischievous glint in her eyes. Gods we're perfect for each other!

"Not feeling so bad about robbing that guy anymore, huh?"

Gods that shit eating smile. I grin sheepishly, and she rolls her eyes. She pulls a card from her coat and taps the hood of the Cadillac.

We all lean in, waiting for some amazing magic to transform the car into a portable little card.

…Nothing's happened.

Mori looks at the card and we peek over her shoulder. The image inside is empty.

We sag our shoulders in disappointment, damn it! It would've been so cool to take it with us! Thomas hops in the trunk, not sure why but it's what he wants, Mori plops in the passenger's seat and Daisy takes the back seat with Horse laying his head down in her lap.

I take the driver seat, thankfully I have my license now, and we all buckle up. Okay, time to go to the train station as one big… family?

We sit in the car for a second when we realize something, where the fuck is the train station?

I pull the car around in front of an alley and two figures walk out of the shadows.

"Heeey! Young man, lookin' for a _good_ _time_?"

"Oooh, he's got a party! We do groups, five dollars per person per hour."

 _Shar-pei_ and _Angel Dust,_ the local famous prostitute duo. Really nice people, kind of unexpected because of the whole whoring thing.

I rub the back of my head in embarrassment, "… where's the cross-continental railroad station?"

* * *

An hour in traffic later I pull _my_ Cadillac into the parking of the train station. We pile out of our seats, or the trunk in Thomas's case, and they start heading towards the ticket office. I stay behind and say goodbye to this _amazing_ piece of _artwork!_

"SAMSON!" Mori yells at me besides the entrance, "HURRY UP, I'M NOT MISSING A TRAIN BECAUSE YOU'RE BEING DRAMATIC!"

I sigh, woe is me. I can't even say a proper goodbye to the car we stole. Oh well, it can't be helped I guess.

After a few minutes we check out with our tickets, our train will take us to Utah. From there we transfer onto another line into Chicago and so on. Gods, why can't these things just be a single route all the way through? Well, if we jumped onto a freight train we would. Mori would never let us though, 'Spend some money and buy us some comfortable transportation!' she told me when I suggested using a freight train.

Not like it's _my_ money or anything she's having us spend!

Mori sighs next to me as we sit in the waiting area, "Look, Babe, I'm sorry we're spending all your cash! I'll pay you back when we get to camp or something, okay?"

I pout and look out the window. She rolls her eyes and bumps my shoulder with hers, "Baaaabe! Stop ignoring meee!" She grabs my shoulder and starts shaking me violently, "Baaaaabe!"

I can't help it anymore and start laughing like an idiot. Fuck, this girl drives me crazy! I pull her off her chair and into my lap. She laughs and wraps her arms around me. We kiss a few times before she breaks away, "In a better mood now, Babe?"

She has a coy smile as her emerald eyes twinkle mischievously. Our faces are inches from each other, the connection I feel between us, the sincerity of her emotions, I think we're in love. Not just kiddy goo-goo eyes stuff, the real deal.

I may be jumping the gun here, but I think she's going to be the one. It's a shame that it is the way it is, but demigods find love fairly easily and early. It's a consequence of our generally short lifespans.

Someone clears their throat next to us. We look over and Thomas and Daisy are giving us funny and coy looks.

I blush and go to push Mori off of me, instead she pulls my hair back and practically devours my face in a sloppy five-minute make-out session.

She pulls away and holds my head to her chest while she glares triumphantly at Thomas and Daisy, though her eyes flicker to Daisy more than they do my brother. Daisy's eyes waver slightly and she looks away in some mix of shame and possibly jealousy.

It takes me a second to connect the dots, but when I do I realize I'm being a freaking idiot. Mori's jealous. Fuck, girls are weird creatures. Why couldn't I have turned out gay? Surprised I didn't since woman have _literally_ been the source of all of my problems so far.

I push Mori back so she isn't smothering me in her chest, though I do miss the contact, and look her sternly in the eyes. She challenges me with her own hard glare and we sit there for a moment, a silent argument passes between us as neither back down.

She sighs dramatically and touches my forehead to hers, "…I'm sorry. I know it isn't fair."

"It's okay, I don't blame you. You worry for me, after all." I wrap my hands tenderly around hers, "You know that I'm yours, and I'll always be."

I feel her head rubbing mine as she nods. She pulls a card from her coat and shows it to me. It's a mistform card with the Golden Apple of Immortality I gifted her. She smiles sweetly as she remembers the devotion I've given to her.

She bites her lip and I feel her emotions flare up, "Babe, I want you to make a promise to me. I don't want to be alone, not anymore. My whole life it's been just me, my father hasn't really even been there for me. He gave me to Chiron when I was a child, pawning me off the second he could."

Her breath is shaky, but she levels herself out, "You're the only true friend I've ever had. Samson, I want you to always be with me in heart. Swear to me you'll always be mine, please –"

She starts crying and many emotions flow through me. I know this isn't okay, that it's not healthy. But, I can't help myself. I can feel her emotions, all the despair and frenzy of crippling loneliness. The pure sadness she feels by being abandoned and shunned her whole life.

 _I know how she feels, because I feel the same._

"Mori, -" My voice is calm and soothing. She holds her tears and looks hopefully into my eyes, "- I swear upon my honor, upon the Styx itself, to always be yours, from now till the end of days." Invisible thunder rumbles in the cloudless sky. Mori's eyes widen as she stares at me incredulously.

More tears well in her eyes, but they're tears of joy this time. She wraps me in a tight hug and I squeeze her back.

Is this a good decision to make? Fuck no, we're just kids. What the hell do we know about love?

But I made a promise, I'll live up to it fully. Because as far as I know, _I love her_.

* * *

Nightmares are an interesting thing. Fear can be irrational, it can be horrible and just plain nasty. But it has a reason, it's a warning. It's your body preparing itself for danger and warning your soul of impending doom.

So to have a nightmare, it means you're being warned of danger.

Danger, fear, that's all I can describe the _thing_ I see in my dream.

My vision is blurred, warped even. All I see are flashing shadowy forms and shrill cries. Is that pain, or just a monster roaring in fury?

The ground beneath me trembles like an earthquake, only that isn't the correct way to describe the feeling. The rumbles are alternating, like the stomping of feet, only _much_ more powerful.

A portal of sorts open up in my vision and I find myself looking at a black form bound to the earth with great golden chains.

The being, even laying down, is taller than I am. Shimmering light flicks in my vision as I see a gorgeous and flowing mane of what has to be pure golden hair. I look to the other side and see a tail of the same material flickering and flattering in frustration.

" _ **Come to me."**_ The voice is thick, rich and deep like the ground with a slight accent to it. Almost like a demonic cowboy if I were to compare it to anything.

" _ **Follow my voice, come and release me from my bounds. These petulant witches think they can control me. They cannot. Find me, free me, and I shall reward your loyalty."**_

Red volcanic orbs awaken in the mass of shadows and a feeling of madness pours over me. It's overwhelming at first, gnawing and clawing at my mind, but I push the feeling back and regain control of myself.

The creature snorts in amusement and I notice the volcanic orbs are actually eyes. The beast is so black I can barely make sense of it, but eventually it clicks what I'm looking at.

It's the largest horse I've ever seen! The danger and killing intent rolls off of it and I feel dread filling my heart.

" _ **Curious, strong enough to resist my power? A true marvel."**_

I feel something starting to pull at my back. At first it's a tug, then soon it feels like a thousand hands are pulling on my very being. But something else keeps me in place. Two forces tug at me and the strain begins to hurt in _stinging_ and nigh unbearable pain.

" _ **Return, find me. Release me. Set me free, no being as grand and as radiant as I should be locked away like cattle! Be the instrument of my roaring fury, and your reward shall be legendary!"**_

Then, like a bullet, I shoot away. Through fields and over trees, the world passes me in a blur. Something races past me and I swear it's an old fashioned wooden sleigh. The auburn form in the sleigh passes me by and I swear I see it turn around and look at me.

Who was that, and why are they so familiar to me?

Then I crash through a building and with a shocking jolt I wake up with a shout.

Mori flinches awake as her ring scimitar springs to life unconsciously in her hands as she blinks her bleary eyes awake.

I sit up and roll my fists in my eyes as I clear away my pounding headache.

"Babe?" Her voice strains as she wakes up more, "Wus- what's wrong? Everything kay'?"

I lie back down next to her and look out the window as trees race by in the night sky. The moon hangs high as its gentle silver fills the room Mori and I share to our self. The peaceful light soothes my nerves and clears away my headache.

Mori disperses her sword and lies back down with me and snuggles to my side, "Doing okay now? Bad nightmare?"

My heart still pumps like crazy, I can't even talk right now. The feeling of looking into those volcanic red eyes, that fleeting feeling of madness, that was _awful._ Whatever that thing was is ancient and powerful. I felt like I was losing myself in its power, but I managed to stay sane.

Sensing my rapid heartbeats, Mori holds me close and the feeling of her safety clears my panic. I can always count on her, she's strong (and beautiful). I know I can be safe with her around.

She doesn't push for anymore answers and Hypnos quickly overtakes us once again.

* * *

The following morning, we all woke early and had breakfast in the dining caboose. Even though trains are becoming less and less popular, there's even rumors of bankruptcy among the transit lines, this train is remarkably modern and clean.

Shiny wood and polished bronze decorate all bits of the train, it gives the impression of the old Agatha Christie novel. Murder on the Orient Express if I remember correctly.

Daisy places her plate across from me as she scoots next to Thomas in the booth. We're the only people in this section of the train right now, the cooks placed warmed food buffet style out for the passengers and disappeared into another section of the train, leaving it essentially abandoned.

My sour mood must be written all over my face as Horse, who's happily munching down the cooked steaks that were laid out, asks the question everyone's been wanting to ask for a little while now.

" _The fook happened to ya mate? Look like you tried wrestling Ares himself with them bags in your peepers."_

Well, no one actually knew what he said besides me. To everyone else it was just a horse neighing slightly in my general direction.

I sigh and straighten myself up in my seat. Everyone leans forward and waits for what I'm about to say.

"I had a dream. No, a nightmare would be a better word to describe it. Something ominous and furious. It was a black beast, big as a boulder, with a glowing golden mane and –" "Volcanic red eyes filled with hatred."

I snap up and look at Daisy. She's fidgeting in her chair as I stare at her. How does she know?

"Daisy, how did you know that? Did you read my mind, look in my memories?" My tone is accusing, I don't like things poking around in my brain. Mother did once as punishment. It was… unpleasant.

She waves her hand in the air rapidly, "No, no! I had a dream! I-I think we had the same dream, maybe. I'm not sure what it is, but it's something _dreadful._ "

She shifts her eyes away, something I notice. That last bit was a lie. She knows something about what was in our dreams, but _fear_ is keeping her mouth shut.

I narrow my eyes and she shrinks under my gaze, her eyes darting to everywhere but mine. I sigh and lean back in my seat, we'll have to approach her about this later. I don't want to hate her, so far she's been nothing but pleasant. I want her to be a friend, if this is a ruse then it would break my heart.

No one so nice, pure even, should be cursed to be a lamia.

The door slams open, and large thudding makes itself known in the cabin. The person stomps over to the buffet and slaps a bunch of steak and other hearty food onto a large plate.

The man as I now see grabs a loose chair and stomps it hard on the side of our booth before practically throwing himself in it.

He's gruff and hulk like, almost like a drill sergeant. His leather duster is thick and heavy, like it's not even real leather, but something stronger made to look like it. His face is tanned and covered in faint scars, his eyes are hidden behind a pair of pitch black aviators and his lips are pulled in a scowl as he looks from person to person at our booth.

It clicks in my mind and I realize I've seen this man before, years ago when mother first took me to Olympus.

I bow as well as I can sitting down at a table and my friends do as well. Horse even does a cute curtsy in his mini horse form.

"Lord Ares, it is a pleasure to be graced by your presence."

He rolls his eyes I assume behind his sunglasses and waves me off rudely, "Oh stop with the dick sucking, Brown Noser! Fuck, Eris was right, you are boring and stiff! You're luck she vouched for your skills, I'm in need of a good demigod and you've earned a reputation up in Olympus!"

We sit up straight as Ares starts digging into his steak like a hog slouches up food from its trough. Huh, guess boars aren't _just_ a symbol and sacred animal of his.

His head snaps up and he grins ferally at me, "Got balls thinking that way bout' me kid, I like that! Guess you aren't as big a pussy as I thought!"

Did he? No, you _know_ when a god is rooting around in your thoughts. So how did he know? Am I somehow projecting my thoughts? Could be so, I've already projected my mind into another person, thoughts or maybe _feelings_ might not be as far-fetched as I thought.

He grabs my orange juice and chugs the whole thing back, then sighs in relief as he lazes back in his chair.

"I've got a quest for you nerds. Soon here you'll end up in this shitty little town, my favorite kid's kicking it back right now with their ma. Some bad shit's about to go down there, I want you to back them up. I'd be very _upset_ if I lost my favorite kid because some troglodytes outnumbered them. That's no way for my favorite warrior to go."

He leans forward and a pressure wafts through the cabin, "Give them some back up, it's worth your time. Do a good enough job and I might even give you something nice, kay' sweet pea?"

He paps my cheek condescendingly and stands up.

"Oh yeah, have fun with the little gremlins. Remember, _I'm watching."_

The he disappears in a flash of fire, and the pressure in the cabin is released and we all take deep breaths. When did we stop breathing?

We all look at each other as the realization hits us. We just got forced into a quest by the war god!

Suddenly weird scratching and rattling starts shaking in the caboose, like thousands of mice are crawling in the walls.

I think back to the last thing Ares said, what the hell are 'little gremlins'?

Then the windows shatter and I realize what he meant.

Kobalos, _fucking goblins!_


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: Chapter 17, the start of a few chapters that take place in Mori's perspective. This is only for a few chapters, but I wanted to experiment with a new POV since perhaps** _ **something**_ **might happen to Samson that leaves someone else in control of the quest for a few chapter. Ya' never know, though!**

* * *

 _With Mori, summer 1957_

This Camp place is really fun! Everyone has weapons and they hurt things with them, I'm super excited because Mr. Horsey says we get to fight monsters!

I don't like monsters, I would always see a bunch at school and in the waves. Daddy didn't like when I talked about them though, he said I would bring curses and get people hurt if I talked about them.

But I get to kill them now, so no one has to be afraid because I'll protect them!

Mr. Horsey says that my mommy is a Geek Goddess. That's so cool! I wonder if I get any cool magic powers? Oh! Maybe I can turn into a seagull and fly high in the sky! Or a cute baby penguin and swim fast in the ocean, that way I can follow Daddy when he's off on his big boat trips.

I have to sleep in a cabin with a bunch of other people. Mr. Horsey says that a god called _'Herse's'_ lets kids like me sleep there because I haven't been 'claimed' by anybody.

I hope my mommy claims me soon, it smells like the docks back in Iceland and all the boys here seem kind of mean. This nice older boy named Jack told me that they're just upset because so many kids get smushed in here because their parents don't claim them.

That's not nice! They should let their kids stay with their brothers and sisters in their super cool cabins!

* * *

A few weeks after I came here and I still don't like the Herse's cabin! It smells and no one wants to be my friend, they make fun of me because I talk differently from them. Some of them call me a 'nazi' or a communist, which totally isn't fair!

Iceland is so much better than stink old Germany or Russia! I've met a few people from there and they suck butt. They're assholes!

Jack sighs as I fume to myself in the corner, "Moroiaca, calm down. It sucks, but you just have to deal with it!"

"But Jaaack!" I whine, "They're a bunch of assholes!"

He stumbles back a little bit, "…Where'd you learn that word! That's a _very_ bad word Mori, Hermes sake you're only eight years old!"

I stomp my foot, "It's not a _bad_ word! The tree ladies taught it to me, they said I should call Chiron that. They told me it's a funny word and everyone would laugh when I say it."

Jack looks like he's about to laugh but stops himself and tries _really_ hard to look like a grown up. His face is funny and red, like a tomato, "Mori, _please_ don't call anybody that! That's a naughty word, and don't listen to the Nymphs, they like to play pranks and get campers in trouble!"

I tilt my head to the side and my loose hair bobs everywhere, "So what do I call Mr. Horsey then?"

He just sighs, "Firstly, call him Chiron. And secondly come over here right quick."

I walk over to Jack and he spins me around and grabs my crazy white hair. He pulls it back tights and wraps some little thing around it. He lets my hair go and I'm shocked when it doesn't come flying back around and hit my eyes!

"There, that's called a 'ponytail'. You use these little bands to keep your hair back and not blinding you like it usually does. I'm surprised your father never showed you this, a lot of girls put their hair like this so it's easier to manage."

I pout and look away, "Daddy never showed me things. He's always busy on his _stupid_ boat. He only taught me English and Icelandic!"

My eyes get teary as I think about Daddy. I miss him… why did he have to leave me here? Jack pats my hair and I feel a little better. I like when I get attention from people, it makes me feel better (it makes me feel loved).

"Okay, Mori, why don't you go outside and find a friend to play with? You have until the end of the week before we have to find some activities for you, now's the best time to find some friends!"

* * *

It's really nice outside today, it's all sunny and pretty. I know the tree ladies love days like this! I walk around camp and look at all the people here. Some look kind of nice, while others look really mean.

The 'Airsea' campers are all really mean, everyone says they are and I believe them. I tried saying hello to one and he pushed me to the ground and called me really mean words!

I got so mad my vision went white and I couldn't see anything for a second. When I could see again, where the camper was is now a fluffy and cute white bunny! I picked her up and she started whining and thumping me with her fluffy feet.

She's getting really hard to carry so I put her on the floor and she races off to the big pretty house Mr. Horsey lives in. I giggle and wave good bye to the sweet bunny.

Something feels kind of weird on my back, and I have a sudden urge to look up. I do and I see this really weird see through picture floating above my head. I squint my eyes, but I think I see the an old fashioned torch flaring in the pretty neon symbol.

After a second it disappears, and I'm left alone in the little dirt road. I look around and I spot one of the tree ladies looking at me with really big eyes. I call out to her to ask if she knows what that funny picture was, but she gasps and runs back and vanishes in a tree.

I shrug my shoulders and turn back around to the cool cabins everybody sleeps in. No one's around right now so I spend time looking at the funny way the cabins were built. I stop at one with the number '6' written into it and I see a cute little boy sitting on the steps.

He looks really sad and lonely, now my chest feels kind of weird. It hurts, but not like I was pinched by somebody, this feels different. I can't really tell how it feels, I guess my heart feels broken?

I walk over to the boy and he looks at me with his super pretty eyes. They look like they're glowing almost, and they're really grey. His hair is shaggy and really black and he's really skinny. His shorts and orange shirt look like super silly because they're way too big on him!

We look at each other for a minute, his eyes are kind of puffy and red, like mine when I cry a lot. He must be really sad then. I walk over and sit next to him on the steps. He keeps looking at me so I bump him with my shoulder.

"What's wrong? Did your pet fish die? I had a fishy one time, she was really mean and would always eat any friends I gave her."

He sniffles and wipes his eyes with his hands, "No, it's my father. He died and I'm all alone in my cabin. I want friends, but no one likes me here."

I frown, poor boy. I don't know what I would do if my daddy ever died and went to heaven. I pat his head like Jack always does when I'm sad, I hope he likes this like I do.

He smiles at me and I internally cheer at my victory. "Thank you, my name's Samson Akira, what's your name miss?"

I grin widely at him, "I'm Moroiaca Galdur, call me Mori though, I don't like my long name! Long names are hard to say and take too long."

He scratches his arm, "My father's name is Katsuhiro, that's pretty long. At least I think it is."

"Cat-sue-hero? That's a funny name. Your daddy has a strange name."

He frowns at me, "Yeah? Well, you talk kind of funny!"

I gasp accusingly at him, "Whaaat? I talk funny? Le-gasp, how could I ever not know!?"

We start giggling with each other. It makes me happy that he's happy. I like when I get people to smile and laugh.

"Hey, Samson?"

"Uh-huh?"

"Want to be friends?"

He looks back in thought, "Can we be _best-_ friends?"

I smile and offer him my pinkie finger. He grabs it with his, all kids know about the world-famous oath!

"I pinkie promise!"

* * *

 _With Mori, summer 1966_

After Ares flashes out in his over-the-top dramatics way, all the windows in our caboose explode and I duck and cover my eyes with my sleeves, so glass doesn't fly into them.

As I'm doing that, something heavy slams into me and throws me to the ground. On instinct I grab it and throw it as far away from me as possible.

My cutlass, _Razor,_ materializes from the ring Samson gave me and painted red fire dances along the blade. I stand and swing at something I sensed racing me from the left. I strike through the… thing and it puffs into gold dust.

I look around and see dozens of little green men crawling into the windows like some kind of nasty super sized insects!

The rest of my companions have gathered their senses again and started fending the attacking monsters. I can get a better look at them now and I see they look like midget old men with fat guts, _super_ wrinkly skin, long spindly limps and fur clothes.

I duck from a dingy spear one throws at me and I follow him up with a little specialty of mine. Burn it with fire!

The little midget screams in pain as my blue fire slams into it. It starts running around like crazy as I deflect a spear jabbed at me and bring my sword and cut deep into its gut.

"Samson!" I yell as three little gremlins start swinging spears at me, "Samson, what the hades are these things!"

He jabs his shield into the neck of one little midget and cuts it down the middle with his sword. I slash my sword through three of the things and kick one and send him flying through a broken window.

"They're called Kobalos, basically goblins! They swarm their enemies, we have to be careful, more are coming!"

Ah fuck! There's only about ten little goblins left in the train car now. Daisy is slashing through two and Thomas is chasing three to the other end of the car. I kick a coming goblin hard in the gut and it coughs out wildly as I take his head off with _Razor._

Okay, things are going pretty well right now. There's only five goblins left, easy enough for us to take out.

Fire suddenly starts spreading in the cabin as the goblin I set aflame races around and starts catching the fabric on fire.

Ah right… fuck!

I stab a goblin and race over to Samson, "Babe, train on fire."

He looks at the fire then back to me, "…"

I smile sheepishly and rub the back of my head, "Yeah, I'm sorry."

He just groans and grabs my hand, "Everyone! We have to head towards to front cabins, our way back is cut off!"

Thomas kicks the door open and races through. Samson starts guiding me towards the opening, we slash through the last remaining goblins and I look back and see Daisy carrying Horse as she follows close behind us.

After she makes it past the door I wave my hand and magic tendrils grow and close the door, sealing it shut and hopefully preventing those things from following that way.

Samson lets go of my hand (dammit bring it back!) and I look into the new car we're in. Hard wood doors line both sides with number next to the little windows in them.

Probably the staff rooms.

The door at the other end slams open and several more goblins rush through and start chucking spears at us.

Samson raises his hands and the bubble shield spell I taught him flares up and the spears bounce harmlessly off of it.

The spell disperses, and I extend my hand out. Tendrils explode from the wood and wrap around the goblins. The thorn on the vines cut deep into them as they drag across their skins, their howling shrieks make me feel a little bad but I shake the thought from my mind and flick my wrist.

Shimmering crystal arrows form in the air around us for a second before racing out and stabbing into the goblins, finishing them off for good.

The door behind us starts rattling like crazy as something big starts slamming _hard_ into it. The wood creaks and crones as It starts breaking under the beating.

I wave my hands and a large astral spears flickers into existence in front of the door. I point at the door and the spear flies forward and stabs half way into it.

I smirk as I hear the scream of pain as it spears into whatever was pounding on the door.

"Mori, let's go!"

Samson yells and guides us to the opposite door. As we run several of the staff doors explode open and goblins charge and start jumping on us.

One latches onto my head and starts yanking into my hair and head with its sharp needle like nails. I groan in pain and grab it by the legs and slam it down on the ground. While its dazed I bring my boot down and crush its windpipe with a hard STOMP!

It gurgles and struggles before puffing into dust. I scream as something stings into my shoulder. I reach around and feel something, then yank it out and see it's a small spear. I turn around and glare at the goblin who threw it.

The little monster gulps before I chuck the spear back and pierce it deep in the gut. Thomas runs forward and tackles four goblins to the floor. Daisy and Samson rush forward and stab the struggling goblins in the chest.

They help Thomas to his feet and we all race forward into the next cabin. I use the same spell to seal the door behind us and we find ourselves back in a different dining caboose.

I wave my hands and my magic vines grow and cover the windows before the goblins can break through them. Dozens of little green clawed hands start reaching through gaps in my vines and clawing at the air by us. We run through the cabin and towards the next door.

Everyone crosses into the next cabin, but before I do I turn around and snap my fingers. My vines suddenly snap tight and cut off the arms of all the goblins reaching through.

I grin at their cries and turn around and meet my friends into the next car. Samson breaks open the door and now we're in a dark and dim room filled with boxes and chest shaped refrigerators.

Samson looks around and spots a latch leading to the roof of the train.

"Samson?" Bitch-I mean Daisy asks, "Are you sure we want to go out there? There's probably much more out there than there is inside!"

As much as I don't want to admit it, I agree with Daisy. It's risky for almost no reason to go out there. There's nothing preventing us from getting thrown off the roof!

"We have to jump off, the trains not going that fast right now as we near the mountains. It's super dangerous, but we need to time our jump so we land in a field and not throw ourselves off a cliff!"

Okay, I _really_ have to stop underestimating my husb-boyfriend!

He climbs the ladder and opens the latch and slips through onto the roof. Thomas follows next then I go after. The wind blows fairly loudly, but not as much as I was expecting. I reach back into the latch and help Daisy push Horse onto the hot chrome roof.

He neighs and whines, but I yank him up and plop him on the roof. I look around and see we're passing into the foothills past the mountains. We're running out of time, once we pass the hills the trains going to speed up and we won't be able to jump off!

Thomas points towards the back half of the train and we see a horde of the goblins charging across the roof after us.

We turn the other way and start towards the front of the train. Several goblins pull themselves from the sides of the train in front of us. They stumble to find traction on the metal, so we quickly kick and throw most off them of the sides.

They cry as they slam into the dirt, gravel and rocks of the ground off the sides of the train. I look back and my eyes widen as I quickly duck under a projectile aimed for my head.

I throw my hand out and a blast of thundering air explodes out and knocks dozens of arrows out of the air before dispersing before it can reaching the horde.

The horde's snarls and growls reach my ears over the wind and I turn around and race over the roof and catch up with my friends.

Samson stops, and we do as well. "Quick, grab the sides!"

I raise an eyebrow, but I look ahead of the train and see we're approaching a large and steep incline in the tracks as it goes up and over a coming hill.

We quickly race to the sides and grab the bars the run the length of the train. Thankfully Daisy has a strong grip, so she can hold onto Horse and the bars at the same time.

I look back and the horde is only a few cars behind us. Their eyes widen as they all scramble to find something to hold on to. Some grip onto each other or various bits of machinery while others stab their spear into the metal and hope that will hold them.

I tighten my grip as the train hits the incline and starts angling more and more towards the sky. Dozens of goblins lose balance and start tumbling towards the back and off the sides of the train as the train speeds up to make it over the hill.

Many goblins shriek and scream as their friends claw desperately to hold themselves onto the accelerating train.

Peaking back at the horde of hundreds I see the goblins numbers have dipped down to only a half of their numbers. We reach the peak of the hill and Thomas, Daisy and myself start rising to our feet to continue down the train.

Before we do Samson, still holding onto the railing yells out, "Wait! The hill dips! We're going back down!"

Our party quickly hunkers down and latches onto the railings again. The closest goblins grin ferally as they start sprinting at us as we hold ourselves down.

Their smiles turn to frowns as they pick-up speed, and the keep going faster until they slip and tumble past us and fall off the sides of the train.

I look at the tracks in front of us and see that between hills as a flat patch of grass.

"Samson, look! Between the next coming hill!"

He follows my directions and see the patch of grass. "Everyone, when I tell you roll off the sides of the train! We need to lose the goblins in the woods!"

I feel the train slow down as it reaches the base of the hill. I look back and see that the horde divided themselves, half stay on the roof and slowly advance on us while the others clampers back inside of the trains, likely to run through and cut us off and attack us from both sides.

"NOW!" Samson screams and we all stand and jump off the side of the train. We do our best to roll as we slam hard into the grass and roll several feet forward as the momentum continues our movements forward. After a few seconds we stop and I feel dizzy as the world seems to tumble and spin around me.

I groan as I flip myself over after I stopped. Gods I can feel bruises forming _everywhere_ on me. Ah fuck, I hope my mackintosh coat is okay! Samson just bought this and it's _really_ godsdamn expensive!

Samson hobbles over to me as best as he can and places a gentle hand on my shoulder. I smile dumbly to myself as his touch makes everything feel just a little bit better.

Giggling like a maniac, I reach up and yank his head down so his lips crash into mine. He's caught off guard at first, but quickly gathers his wits and starts pressing more into my smooch.

I almost groan as we start French kissing, but he suddenly pulls away and I pout cutely at him. The bastard just smiles and pats me on the head.

He helps me to my feet and my legs shake a little, but after a few seconds I have full control of them again.

Everyone seems fine as we all stand back up and stretch our aching bodies. Horse whines and cries and Samson just rolls his eyes at whatever Horse just said. Huh, I really hope my boyfriend actually can talk to horses and isn't just going fucking crazy.

"Okay! We need to head into the woods, that horde might hop off the train and we need them to lose our scent in the trees. There's going to be Nymphs out here who can cover us as march east."

I quickly speak up after him, "Are you sure we can find Nymphs out here? This is a huge forest and there might not be any out here at all!"

He shakes his head, "I can tell there's some out here, my aunt taught me how to sense for Nymphs in the wild. They help demigods out more often than you'd think."

"Wait, who taught you how to do that?"

"My aunt Artemis, I learned a few things from her when she was in camp a few month ago."

Daisy recoils horrified, "The Huntress! You can't trust her Samson, she'll kill you and everyone you know! The hunt is cruel and evil, without sympathy or any emotion at all!"

We all look at her weird as she quakes in her rain boots and mumbles fearful things quietly to herself.

"Uh, Daisy?" She looks at me, her dark green eyes twinkle in fear as tears pool in her eyes. "Artemis hunts evil monsters, if you don't do anything wrong or stay out of nature you'll be fine. Nymphs often look up to Artemis, but they aren't her servants. You're fine to walk through the forest with us."

She latches onto me and pulls me into a _bone crushing_ hug. Holy shit this ditzy bitch is strong!

Samson gives me a stern look and I roll my eyes, he just wants us to get along but I'm having none of it. No woman can get close to Samson, he belongs to me! Any bitch that wants to take him from me is going to find a fireball hurled into their face!

I pry Daisy off myself and I take a quick look at our surrounding. We're high in the foothills, but to travel east we need to continue through the forest and back over the mountains.

Turning around I meet my companion's eyes, determination flows through us as we look into the foreboding wilderness that surrounds us.

Horse snorts and we walk into the wild as twilight settles in the sky. The dark shadows of the mountain seem symbolize our uncertain future as the light of the fading fun disappears over the horizon.

We're in wild territory now.


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Hey guys, chapter 18 time! I won't be updating a whole bunch since I'm going on vacation for the holidays for a week. I might be able to get a chapter up during that time, but I can't promise anything. This might be the last chapter in Mori's pov, but there might be one more. It depends on how the story flows into the next one.**

* * *

 _With Mori, Summer 1966_

It was midday when we jumped off the train and lost the little midget monster army. We've been hiking through the woods for hours now. Samson is hunting for a Nymph, he tells us that Nymphs in forests like these will either distract or cover the trail of demigods.

According to him, nature spirits are much greater allies to demigods then we ever realized. When I asked him about why spirits like them would help total strangers out he just smiled at me and said, _"You can find help almost anywhere, you just have to ask nicely first."_

Wise asshole, gods I love him.

I've been lost in my little think pan for a while. Thinking about things, you know? Samson and I have been together for a little while now, and even though this is such a ditzy princess thing to say, I think I freaking love him!

I know… I know that throwing my naked body at him isn't a great way to start our relationship. Gods above I'm almost a whore for doing something so degrading.

But… I don't regret it. Sexuality is a part of our relationship, but it's only a means of connection. What Samson and I have, it goes much further than two teens screwing around when they can.

Mother once told me to be open with someone when I feel comfortable, that having desires doesn't have to be a bad thing. She told me that as a woman I'll have a lot of shit to deal with in life, but it's not always about me. I can be strong, powerful _and_ care for someone at the same time.

Hecate is an… eccentric individual. I think all of her time in seclusion rattled her social senses, perhaps that's why she has three sides to her being? Or instead, perhaps her connection to time throughout the day is what caused her to become three sided?

 _"I wasn't always like this."_ She told me once when I was young, _"Once upon a time I was a proud and coherent Titaness, now I'm a lonely God ignored by all. Even as the creator of the mist and the Lady of Magic I exist only when needed, to be of **service** to others."_

I'm the only demigod(demititan?) of Hecate at camp. Mother calls me her pride and joy, her _favorite_. I've dedicated much of my time to trying to uphold that. With my training and adeptness in magic I've **earned** the spot as being one of the most powerful and dangerous demigods alive currently.

I do it to honor my mother and spread word of how important and powerful she is. It certainly made her happy to know that her daughter is stronger than almost all of the Olympian demigods at camp.

The Hunters tried to recruit me onetime, they tried dragging me into their _little club_ so they could control my strength. It was a powerplay, Artemis wanted my strength because she knows her hunters are nothing without her.

Simpering little harpies are so arrogant it makes me want to hurl. Strip away that cheating power they were given for selling their souls and all they are is scared little children.

A hunter tried to murder me one time when I pissed her off. She pulled out a knife and tried to slit my throat open, her bastard little cult sisters never even tried to stop her as they watched on the sidelines.

They sure were surprised when I cursed her stupid blessing away. A neat trick mother taught me, how to dispel magic.

The Hunter froze, dropped her weapon, and started crying when she realized just how powerless she actually is. I've almost never felt better when I lorded over her weakness. The child curled up and wailed in agony for ten minutes before I took pity and turned her into a jackalope.

I got away with it, of course. Artemis had no choice but to leave with her tail tucked between her legs when witnesses told her that her _precious angel_ tried to murder someone in anger.

That feeling, that _power_ I had in that moment. The right to shoo away a goddess in shame, it felt good.

 _It was intoxicating._

* * *

"Thank you, ma'am. I appreciate your assistance, I'll make sure to send some nice Demeter boys out here soon."

We traveled another our and finally found our Nymph. The unnamed tree spirit agreed to help us out, much to my surprise. Samson talked with her for a while and worked out a deal. She and her sisters in this forest will cover our trail, and I return he sends a couple cute Demeter boys out here to give the Nymphs company.

Well, okay then.

"Wait!" The Nymph called out before we could turn and leave, "You should really go meet with my niece, she's really nice! I just hope you're fine with being a slave, Amazon's don't let their men out of their sights, or have rights and stuff like that."

Samson coughs awkwardly into his fist, "Um, no thank you. I'm fine with having freedom and well… being a person, I guess."

She waves her arms animatedly, "W-wait! You really should do it! I promise it's an opportunity, you really won't regret going to her!"

Samson waves her off, "…Right, well, we'll be off. Things to kill, sights to see and all that."

"SHE'S A WIND NYMPH, THEY'RE EXCELLENT LOVERS!"

Samson screams back, "LADY, WHY DO YOU WANT ME TO BANG YOUR GODSDAMN NIECE SO MUCH!"

Um, what? Tree hugging hussy wants _my_ man to do what?

" _Excuse me?"_ I screech at the harpy, "She wants you to do what?"

Samson puts his hand on my shoulder, "Sweetie…"

No! _Fuck_ no! I shake my hot chunk's hand off my shoulder and summon an astral spear. The Nymph's eyes widen, and she takes off into the forest. I roar and charge after her, "GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE! HE'S MY MAN, SPREAD THE WORD! ANYONE WHO TRIES TO SAY OTHERWISE HAS TO DEAL WITH _ME!"_

She's screaming like a maniac as I chase after her. I vaguely hear Samson telling me to stop but I ignore him, no way I'm letting this slide!

"Please!" She pleads jumping over a fallen log. I slash through the brush and curse when I smack my head in low hanging branches. Fuck this Nymph is nimble, fast as Hades too! I swear that the branches are moving to block my way, but I ignore them and continue my hunt!

"Please just stop! Nymph's get lonely and I want to make sure she has somebody to looooove!"

I throw my spear and she _barely_ dodges it as it grazes her tunic. She banks left and turns straight into a large pine tree and vanishes into it. She hit home base, dammit!

Once I'm at the tree I start pounding on it with my fists of fury.

"GET OUT HERE! COME OUT AND DIE LIKE A BITCH!"

The tree quivers, as if in fear, and I punch the tree one last time. Fuck dude, punching wood _hurts_. I rub my injured knuckles gently, yup, I slit them open.

I give one last glare before I turn around. Samson pushes through the brush and the rest of our party follows behind him.

Thomas gives me a funny grin, "…lmao…die like a _birch_ …"

"Um, Thomas? What the Hades is a 'lmao'? Also fuck your shitty ass pun."

He keeps grinning.

Samson walks over and gives me a stern look. Huh, it reminds me almost of Chiron when a camper destroys something, or when I turn a hunter into an animal.

"Mori…" Oh gods, here we go, "You can't go around trying to hurt things when they piss you off! If we want to lose that Kobalos army then we need her help, you could screw the plan up and get us all killed!"

I flinch a little, he's not really yelling but his tone is… kind of scary. It's anger, definitely, but something else. There's disappointment in his voice.

I wrap my arms around him, he always likes when we're close like this. Maybe he'll calm down and not be angry with me anymore?

He looks down at me and I shiver under his gaze. His eyes are angered, even if his face is stoic. Looking at him right now he truly looks like a child of Athena, the look of superiority on an otherwise neutral face.

Samson removes my arms and walks away, leaving me behind. I'm stunned, horrified, mortified, all the emotions. Please… not him too.

I don't want to be alone.

* * *

It's now sundown. True to their word the Nymphs have covered our trail. No goblins have come upon us, no monster ambushes or attacking snake witches.

Samson… Samson won't talk to me. I've been traveling at the back of our group, usually I am by his side. I really, _really_ don't like this.

I fucked up, I know this. Beating the tar out of that nature spirit would have been so satisfying, but I understand why Samson's angry with me. The quest, _our safety_ could have been jeopardized.

Someone puts their hand on my shoulder. I look over at them and fury rages in my chest for a moment before it settles down in annoyance.

Fucking. Daisy.

She's giving me a sympathetic smile and I just want to rip that smooth fucking face off!

"Hi, Mori!" Calm down, Mori. Calm down. "I see you're having some problems with Samson."

Don't whip out your sword… don't cut her head off!

"I think you might be needing some help."

No, fire won't do. Too many things to burn, Samson might get mad.

"An apology is really all you need. He's sure to forgive you if you're honest!"

Okay… fuck her anyways, but she's right. Gods above I'm such a prideful bitch! I sigh in anger and push Daisy's hand off my shoulder.

"Okay, Daisy I –" "Yes Mori?"

Asddfvfjdvhj!

"Daisy?"

"Yes?"

"Don't fucking interrupt me!"

She puts her hands behind her back and smile nervously, sweat drips down the side of her face. I smile inwardly, at least she still fears me.

I cough into my fist, "Anyways, I really appreciate your advice, but if you tell me what I should and shouldn't do with my relationship with Samson I will actually _murder_ you! Kay, sweetheart?"

She gulps and shimmies away to walk next to Thomas, whom wraps an arm around Daisy's waist and pulls her close.

Fucking Hades that man works quick! First _all_ of the Hesperides now a fucking lamia!

Daisy quickly stomps hard on his foot and he lets go. Okay, so I guess they're _not_ a thing. Kind of glad for that, I really don't want to know what a child between those two would come out as.

A fucked-up monster?

A mentally deranged legacy?

I shudder at the thought. Gods the thing that would crawl out of that would be so freaking gross.

Samson puts his hand up and we all stop marching. "We'll make camp here. Mori, Daisy? Put up a spell of concealment. I don't want something nasty spotting us, even with the Nymph's protecting us we can't risk a patrol finding our location."

I set my bag down and get to work on crafting an illusion spell. Daisy shuffles away and creates her ward on the other side of our camp.

Yeah, maybe scaring her like that makes me a bitch (it definitely does!) but fuck her anyways. Just like with the Nymph _no one_ but me is getting on that hunk of man meat!

The air shimmers for a second before relaxing and I know our protection for the night is set up and running well.

Samson's created a wood pile and Horse lights up the fire for the night. Thomas and I pull some old logs around and set them up by the fire. Thankfully they aren't rotting or covered in nasty shit, but I'd much prefer the dingy old chairs at Camp to _roughing it_ like we are now.

"Hey, babe?" Samson looks over at me. I'm glad his angers left his eyes, I didn't think I could take one more second of that look!

"Yes, sweetie?"

I clear my throat to try and hide my growing smile, "What are we going to do for sleeping? We don't have any sleeping bags or blankets, and I'd like something besides the grass and insects to sleep on!"

Daisy raises her hand and we all look at her, "I think I can help. Mother taught me some useful spells for summoning, she told me that I could be useful as a mobile storage container since I'm not so good with combat type magics."

Holy Hera, that's kind of fucked up.

Daisy waves her hand, and nothing happens for a second. Then tents, three of them, appear out of thin air surrounding the fire.

"I have a couple more, but it's pretty tiring summoning large objects like this. Three's all I can manage for the night."

Damn, I'm really, _really_ jealous. Bitch can summon things, granted at the cost of extreme exertion. The only being I know of that can summon things are Gods and Chthonic deities.

Samson looks surprised at our new found sleeping arrangements, "Well, I guess that's sorted. Let's head to bed, everyone, we've got a long trip ahead of us. The Nymphs told me of the nearest town, but it's still fifty miles away. Leave early enough and we can get there by nightfall tomorrow."

He then looks to me, "Mori, will you meet me in our tent?"

I gulp nervously, for Hades sake it feels like I'm getting called to the director's office for starting a food fight (that was _one_ time, Chiron!).

Nights fallen by the time we settled down for the night, the moon is just barely visible through the thick canopy high above our heads.

Samson opens the flap to our tent and invite me in, he follows not long after. I'm disappointed that these tents aren't enchanted like the ones Camp sells at the store, this one is just a regular tent.

He rubs his fingers and fire springs to life in the lantern he brought from outside. Huh, it's pretty handy having magic. I'm glad he came to me for training, it makes me happy he trusted me over any of the other magic users he could have gone to.

Granted most are misandrists and would have enslaved him or just flat out killed him, I'm looking at you Circe! Hmph, she gives us mages a bad reputation!

Samson looks at me funny and I blush in embarrassment. Dammit, I got caught up in my thoughts again!

He coughs and sits down on the roll across from me, I do the same. "Listen, Mori, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have let my anger get out of hand, you don't deserve that. Just- just please be careful with how you react when people anger you. We could've ended up in a dangerous situation and if you got hurt… I don't think I could live with myself if I failed you."

I look away in shame, dammit I can feel my eyes watering already! Fuck, if I knew he was going to blame himself for me getting hurt when it's my fault I never would've gone after the Nymph!

…Okay, I probably still would've. But that shows I still have a problem. Over these past months with Samson I've learned, unfortunately, that I've inherited my mother's temper.

Titans are renowned for being short tempered, it seems mother still has hers and passed it down to me.

I release a sigh, "Ah fuck, Samson? Don't apologize, I'm the wrong person here. I let my anger get control of me and I almost jeopardized everything for petty satisfaction. I can't- I can't promise I'll get over it quickly, but I _promise_ I'll be good person."

I look him deep in the eyes, startling emerald clash with brilliant grey, "I'll be better, for me and for you!"

He smiles fondly and takes my hands in his, "Gods above, Mori Galdur? I love you more than anything in this world."

I lean forward so our foreheads are touching and chuckle at how sweet he is, "And I love you, Samson Akira, more than any stupid being, on Olympus and on this crappy ball of dirt floating in space."

We giggle and settle down on a shared sleeping bag and melt in each other's embrace. Separate we're only half of a person, but put us together? Together you get something great, something whole and earnest.

Something _real._

* * *

I blink my bleary eyes open, last night was refreshing. It relieved a great deal of stress to talk with Samson, I'm glad we can connect like that.

He's still wrapped in my arms when I come to. I look around our tent and see daylight seeping through the flaps in our tent. It's faint, so that means it's early in the morning.

I shake my boyfriend and he blinks his eyes as he awakens. Daww he's such a cutie! Just don't tell him I said that, he's pretty sensitive about his lacking masculinity.

His mouth opens for a big yawn, "Huh? Oh, good morning, sweetheart. Time to wake up already?"

I pat him lightly on the head, "Yes, my dear sleepy puppy, it's time to wake up. Alrighty, up and at 'em, _you_ said we have to wake up early if I remember!"

He groans but gets up and starts getting dresses. I take a quick peek at his butt, yup -still cute! Samson turns and glares at me and I start laughing.

He rolls his eyes and soon enough, we're both fully dressed and ready for the next day's adventure.

We pop up out of our tent and I start the fire again while Samson goes out hunting for small game for breakfast.

Half an hour later he trots back into camp with a few dead rabbits hanging from his grip. It takes us a minute, but the bunnies are skinned, and their offal's are removed.

The scent of cooked meat wakes up our sleeping companions. Thomas and Daisy come out of their tents, mouths watering as I season the meat with some herbs Samson scavenged.

Samson kept the organs of the bunnies and I see his reason now as Horse starts chomping into the raw innards.

Nasty.

Our meal goes by quickly, we still have a schedule if we want to keep our trail hidden away from our pursuers.

Daisy unsummons the gear she created and we all do the best we can to make sure our camping site is indistinguishable from the surrounding nature.

As we ready ourselves the air turns frigid and a pressure fills bodies.

Suddenly red smoke explodes in front of us in a brilliant display before it disperses to reveal a raven-haired teenaged girl with blood red eyes.

The stranger shifts her leather jacket and coughs out red smoke from her mouth, "Gah, fuck! I need to stop inhaling when I teleport!"

Samson quickly bows respectfully and we all take his hint and do the same, "Lady Eris, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance once again."

Eris groans dramatically into her hands, "For fucks sake already! Just call me Eris, and stop being so white collar! Seriously, I'm sick of brown nosers, it's why I like Max the most out of your _little_ group here!"

It's silent between us, Thomas shifts awkwardly and coughs lightly. Eris looks between us and rolls her eyes, "Whatever, look, I'm in need of some help. Max's birthday is coming up soon and I need an idea for a present. He's too young to marry and he doesn't want to leave the mortal world behind, so I need something more mundane to give him."

Samson and I think about it for a second, what's a good gift for Max from his godly lover? He goes before I can think of something, "What about a weapon? Something he can use to defend himself, in case a monster tries to hassle him or something."

Eris looks away in thought, "Hmm, good idea." She shifts her sharp eyes and stares directly at Samson, "…Samson…Sam…Aha! Alright good, thought of a decent name!"

Uh, what? A name for who?

She suddenly stabs a sharp fingernail into her wrist and draws faint, golden blood. She waves her hand and a stream of ichor raises from her arm and forms a big glob in the air.

Her wound closes and the golden blob suddenly turns an obsidian black before compressing and taking form of a stone like dagger that's surprisingly smooth and reflective.

She grabs it as it floats in the air and admires her craft, "Alright nice, a monster killing obsidian dagger. Small enough to carry, sharp enough to slice through any beasts hide. Let's just put some discord magic in, shall we? Now any monster will be turned away when they feel it's essence!"

Huh, a monster repelling dagger? That's a great gift for a clear-sighted mortal.

Eris brings her attention back to us, "Guess I should reward you, huh? I'll just send you to that place Ares wanted you at. My brother-in-war is quite attached to his honorary champion. I don't blame him, a Defender of his caliber is a great asset, would be a shame if those witches took him out dishonorably."

Wait, the Hades is a _Defender?_ Why would Ares, _Ares_ of all Gods think so highly of his champion that he'd try and keep him alive?

She raises her empty hand and snaps her fingers. Then the ground below us explodes in cherry red mist and wraps all around us.

It swirls in a vortex before disappearing, leaving us in the middle of an empty parking lot of an unfamiliar town.

Some people meander about on the streets, cars occasionally drive past the rows of single-story, modest houses and businesses.

Gods this _is_ a simple town.

The scrapping of shoes running on concrete makes us go on alert and we whip around and see a young man sprinting around the corner.

He fumbles when he sees us but continues forward. We don't draw our weapons because we know who this is. Those deep brown eyes, short black hair and chubby, child-like face on the body of a teen with a thick, athletic body.

He's fairly tan as well, when he first came to camp he was pale, but years of field work in the sun darkened his skin and gave him powerful muscles.

This, this is Allen La-rue, demigod son of Demeter and the best fighter in Camp. I've heard Chiron calling him one of the greatest fighters he's seen in decades. Hades, he's trained himself more than Chiron has, that boy doesn't need him anymore. He's already mastered his martial skills at the age of seventeen!

He's basically the truest example of a Greek Hero we have in our time.

Allen runs up to us and catches his breath, "Hey guys! Sorry, but we can't talk, there's a bunch of Kobalos on my tail! Something's going wrong with the town too, the people started freaking out and chasing me! We have to get out of here, I've seen SWAT vans patrolling the area!"

Shit, FUCK! Not this again! The lamia have taken this town too, that's impressive _and_ horrifying! If they can take a town this quickly, then they can do it anywhere we go. There's no safe place in civilization!

Clambering and screeching reaches our ears and dozens of goblins pour from around the street, over the tops of rooves and even bursting through windows!

We draw our weapons and prepare for attack. Allen says a quick prayer I can't make out and rips his jacket off to reveal a bronze chest armor plate. He slaps an embedded flower design over his heart and the metal starts shifting and clicking.

It groans and spreads out over his body, covering every square inch in protective, Greek styled armor. In a second his whole body, sans a helmet, is protected by a full set of knight-like armor, shimmering bronze and beautifully in the morning sunlight.

A stylized javelin and shield appear in his hands and he prepares himself, shield raised high and javelin primed for attack as we gape in awe.

Fuck, this kid's a stone throws away from looking like Achilles!

We shake our awe away and ready our own cool gear, no way we're getting shown up by _this_ asshole!

Time seems to slow down as a wall of goblins charge and jump at us. Then, in an instant, it speeds up and our two forces clash.

Swords slash through weak goblin armor and skin, rickety spears slash for legs and stab at chests, only to be deflected by shield, magic, or weapons themselves.

I'm lost in the heat of battle, my fire-rung cutlass slashes and burns as I rake through goblin upon goblin. I feel scratches forming all across my body as some get lucky grazes with their spears while others use their talon like claws to scratch my flesh.

Allen and Samson are practically spinning through goblins as their defenses protect them from severe damage, keeping their fighting spirit more intact than us without armor. Like dancers, they weave death through lines upon lines of goblin warriors. Thomas too spins like a ballerina of death as his twin daggers carve and slash monsters, limbs go flying as the goblins cry and groan as Thomas brings wanton death around him.

A dozen goblins charge and jump on top of Horse, he neighs as they start clawing and stabbing with their weapons. I roar and charge them, blasting many away with my spells and bisecting a dozen more with wide and manic sweeps.

The goblin pile rumbles and suddenly explodes as the little fuckers are blasted into the air as Horse shows off his true and very impressive form. He starts trampling many goblins under his mighty hooves, a sick squelching sound fills the air as they're smashed like bugs.

I turn my attention back to my fight, but quickly duck as two goblins sail over my head. I see Daisy's also revealing her true form as she whips her tail through legions of Kobalos and hisses angrily as she chucks green fire and stabs her Xiphos into the necks of any monster within reach.

Hissing in pain I bring my sword through the face of a goblin who decided to bite into my calf from behind. Fucking Dionysus worshiping sprites, that stings to all Hades! These fuckers have needle, cat-like teeth and lots of them, bites fucking _sting!_

With a furious roar I slam my open hand down onto the concrete and brilliant blue light explodes around me as a deafening roar of wind over powers our epic battle and launches dozens upon dozens of Kobalos high into the air.

Everyone looks in awe as the little monster's wiggle and scream in the air. Us more earthbound creatures widen our eyes as the airborne monsters come back down and daze us as the smash on top of us.

Since we're demigods (and one lamia), we handled the abuse far better and recovered much quicker than the befuddled monsters and began our counter attack. Sword, spear, magic and flaming hoof ring through the air as we slaughtered dozens of what must be a still hundred-strong mini army with haste.

This opportunity can't go to waste, we can turn the tide into our favor now!

The remaining Kobalos recover and shuffle to their feet as they screech and holler and abandon the fight and flee hopefully back to whatever dark hole they sprung from. Their pitiful whines and whoops fade as they disappear deeper into town.

Exhaustion hits us all like a truck and we drop onto the concrete and breathe heavy gasps as our tired bodies finally fail us. Gods, what a fucking fight! It felt like the battle from my favorite chapter of The Hobbit!

I giggle in excitement, fighting Goblin Hordes, standing valiantly with a group of heroes, that's something straight from a fantasy novel!

Samson rises shakily to his feet and walks over towards me, his feet crunching like sand as he steps in piles of golden monster dust to reach me.

"Mori –" He asks with a weak and exhausted voice, "- are you okay?" His hand is outreached and he's practically _pleading_ for me to be fine.

I shake my head to reassure him, I'm not sure if I could talk even if I wanted to! My voice is kind of shot from screaming like a Viking!

An explosion suddenly rings out through the air and Samson drops to the floor, screaming in pain as blood shoots out of his thigh.

The world stops as I stare at my injured love, sounds feel muffled, emotions feel gone and my sense of being seems non-existent. Muffled cries of pain rake through my ears, but my sense of danger warns through my body and in a split second I'm back on my feet with a shimmering wall of light protecting us from a barrage of bullets.

The law enforcement, as I now see, arrived just after the goblins fled. Guns are held high as their ballistic weapons pound on my shield.

I raise my hands and put as much energy as I can spare into the shield, "Allen!" I scream back at him, "Help Samson, he's been shot! I can't hold my barrier forever, we need to get out of town and back into the forest! The Nymphs will help us!"

Allen, face stoic and hard, nods and goes to help Samson who's thankfully stopped screaming bloody murder.

I feel a weight seem to lift off my shoulders, I turn and see Daisy panting heavily like she's a second from passing out raising her hand as mana seeps from her into my wall.

We both pour more magic into the shield as dozens of police officers and SWAT lay heavy fire into the barrier.

"Mori! Mori, _please_ tell me you have a plan!" Her voice is strained and pleading, and I almost feel like crying because, _I don't know_.

I-I'm not the strategist, I'm scared too! This situation is beyond me, how the _fuck_ do we get out of this?

 _What am I supposed to do?_


	19. Chapter 19

**A/: Hey guys, back with a new chapter! Sorry it's been a while, I was on vacation over the holidays but I'm back and these should start coming out regularly now. Sorry for the long wait, but I hope to make it up in this chapter! After this one we hit the finale' chapter for quest two! I just want to say a quick thank you to** _ **theTrueHero,**_ **they've helped immensely with this story, you really should go check them out. Enough rambling though, back to the action!**

* * *

 _With Mori, Summer 1966_

The roaring fire from the dozens of police and SWAT officers is deafening. I struggle stand and keep my barrier up as sweat drips down my face. My vision begins to blur from the amount of concentration and effort I'm putting into my spell. I'm so exhausted but I can't drop the shield, we'd be torn apart by bullets if I did!

The automatic rifles of the SWAT make this even worse, their weapons are stronger and fire much quicker than I can reinforce my protection spell. I can feel my magic draining, at first I had a pond of mana in reserve, now it's just a puddle.

I've only got a minute at most left in me!

"Mori!"

Huh? I almost couldn't hear that, but Samson's calling out to me from behind. I crane my head back and see Allen helping Samson rise to his good leg.

He takes his mana amulet off and starts hobbling towards me, Allen at his side balancing him.

"Use my amulet, it should make you strong enough to get us out of here!"

Once close enough he puts the amulet around my neck and clasps the fastener behind my neck. In an instant power flows into my body and any previous feelings of weakness and weariness are washed away in a torrent of raw magical power.

It's fascinating, rejuvenating, _**intoxicating.**_

I stand up straight and the forming cracks in my astral wall stitch back together with an effortless wave of my hand. The once roaring fire of ballistic weapons becomes sad muffled pops that bounce harmlessly off my spell.

I look back at my quest mates and take in their appearance. Everyone's clothing's are ripped and torn, their faces are covered in dirt and splotches of blood and their exhaustion is very prevalent in how they're leaning against one another for support.

Daisy clutches her tail as sickly red blood seeps from the wounds made by goblin spears. Horse grunts and growls in annoyance as the entire side of his body is coated in nasty, coagulated scratches. Thomas is panting ferally and clutching an injured arm, likely torn by goblin bites.

Allen himself has held out better, that fancy magic armor suit of his held up unscathed by the rudimentary goblin weapons. He's at most fatigued from slaughtering his way through dozens of enemies in our battle.

Something booms on the other side of my wall. I look back quickly and see the SWAT officers launching concussion grenades at us to no effect.

I sneer and wave my hand, all of the grenades they lobbed zoom back at the police, exploding and knocking half a dozen unconscious while others wailing on the ground as their ears bleed. Thankfully(unfortunately) none of the officers died.

I turn my attention back to the last member of our party, my love, my life, Samson as he rests on the ground with tears in his eyes as Allen wraps his torn shirt around the nasty gash in his thigh. One of the officers hit him there good, what with, I don't know. It must've been something nasty and powerful as a good-sized amount of his flesh is missing.

Fury works its way into my heart as I look upon my injured love. These bastards are going to pay! They've hurt _my_ friends, they've hurt _my_ lover?! Only I get to do that!

"Allen." My voice is crisp and smooth. The surety in my voice replaces any sense of fear in our group.

"Take everyone on Horse and get out of here. Make for the woods, the local Nymphs are helping us, they'll keep us safe in their woods while we rest and heal. I can handle these guys, I'll distract them long enough for you guys to escape, then I'll come and meet up with you again."

He goes to argue but stops when Samson slaps his arm and gets his attention, "Let her do it, she can handle these guys."

Allen scrunches his face, but nods resolutely. Daisy, who's back in her human form, helps Allen lift Samson onto Horse. Thomas and everyone else soon piles on top of Horse who surprisingly can fit four people on himself and look only _slightly_ silly.

They all look at me and wait for me to drop the barrier. I turn back around and face the brainwashed SWAT members who've replaced all the regular officers. There's several dozen of them, all armed with rifles and black militaristic uniforms.

Several armored vans back them up as the troopers form a perimeter and surround most sides of my barrier. They've stopped firing, but their hateful red eyes glare at us as they wait for me to make a move.

I calmly look about them and spot an opening in the perimeter. There, between two cars is an opening with only a few officers and a gap large enough for Horse to slip through. Nodding at my quest mates they spot the weakness and prepare themselves.

My spell explodes with a flick of my hand and blinding blue light and roaring gales of wind explode from the barrier in a deafening blast that races out all around and throws the mortals several yards back, armored vans topple and glass windows and store fronts shatter from the furious wind.

Horse neighs and lurches forward at breakneck speeds and stampedes through the stunned officers and disappears down the road, his loud clomps vanishing as he covers a great distance in only a few seconds. Before the SWAT can react, I focus inward with my magic and call as much power as I can handle to my body, so it surrounds my flesh like an extra, nigh impenetrable second skin.

I grin as a translucent layer shimmers across my body. I've never been able to cast this spell before, it always took more mana than I could generate. But with Samson's amulet, I have more than enough magic in reserve for the spells I never was able to use before.

With his item, I can finally let it all loose. _**I can be free!**_

The SWAT members all start rising to their feet with some struggle, groaning in discomfort from being thrown back so hard.

I stand casually in the empty parking lot, a slight breeze flows through the quiet town. I'm surrounded by dozens of heavily armed law enforcement officers. To most they'd be the one who are scared, the ones who are the sheep facing the wolves alone.

I'm no sheep.

In this situation, I'm the wolf and _they_ are the sheep. Or I'm a giant squid and they're a bunch of smaller fish or other such sea creatures.

Something loud tings off my magic armor and ricochets into a building off my left.

I look over and see a SWAT guy tried to shoot me with a pistol while I was distracted. His eyes widen in disbelief as the bullet bounced harmlessly off of me.

My grin turns even sharper as my magic armor wasn't even fazed by modern weaponry. I can keep this spell up all day and then some!

The man starts barking out orders and other urging commands to his comrades. The remaining officers fully rise and point their rifles at me.

Fools, this fight will just be in vain. I'm on a different level than I was before.

In an instant hundreds of bullets start pegging into me, each and every single bullet splattering harmlessly against my magic aura. I stand there and revel in the power I have over these men.

This power is just too fun! Is this what gods feel like? To be completely immune to such rudimentary harm? Dude, I can totally get use to this!

I extend an arm out and all the bullets freeze in the air. Gods this looks so cool, like something out of an action film!

The bullets stop as my enemies' gawk at me and my display of power. I crane my hand and point downwards, and all of the bullets hovering in the air drop to the ground in a long series of clinks and clanks.

I smile sweetly at them, and they all scowl in response. I do a halfhearted 'come hither' and a bunch of SWAT guys extend police batons from their belts and charge at me with feral war cries.

An astral bo-staff shimmers into existence in front of me. I grab it in my hands and spin it around quickly to get a feel for it.

It's perfectly balanced, good.

I spin it flashily around my waist and grip it tight as I bring it back around and smash the first SWAT man hard across his helmet with enough force to crack it and drop the fucker to the ground unconscious.

Another man races from the side with an overhead swing. I lash my staff out quickly and jab him in the gut. He cries out as I knock the air from his lungs, and in a fraction of a second, I smack his sides with both ends of my pole, hitting his ribs hard enough that he drops to his knees in pain.

Ducking to a knee I spin my leg around and knock a different man down as I trip him mid swing. I smack him hard in the face and he's out cold. I continue my trajectory and bash the other fallen officer on the top of his helmet, sending him into unconsciousness too.

I stand again, and something bashes me hard in the back of the head. I don't feel it of course; my magic is too powerful for anything as mundane as these guys.

Turning around I glare at the shocked man. He goes to bash me again with his baton, but I catch it mid swing. I focus power into my limps as the fool gawks and squeeze his weapon _hard_. It crushes within my grip like a hollow glass tube and the man's eyes widen as he freezes in fear.

I grin like a crazy man and with my other hand unleash a powerful punch that crashes into the man's face, breaking his nose as he's launched twenty feet back and into several of his comrades.

Bullets start pegging off my barrier as the SWAT a-holes try and be smart. Whipping the crushed baton from my hand I bend I bend down and pick up my discarded staff.

Like an Olympian athlete of old I throw the staff like a spear and nail one of the SWAT in the face! Blood gushes from his nose as he crashes to the ground in pain. His compatriots continue firing in vain, as if they're heroes fighting against their lifelong nemesis.

I admire their bravery but criticize their foolishness. Half a dozen men pile into one of their armored vans, I vaguely make out them yelling about catching escapees.

Fuck, they're trying to hunt down my friends! I reach out with my magic and grab the van as they lay onto the gas.

Tires screech as the wheels burn rubber, but the vehicle doesn't move forward. With some minor effort, my magic grasps the van and lifts in the air like a child would with a toy car. The vehicles moves through the air as the men inside scream in fear and confusion.

With a throw of my hands the van launches into one of the two grounded transports and crushes it as they roll over to their sides, destroyed.

Two down, one to go.

The remaining men rally and concentrate their fire upon me. A dozen and a half officers fire with all their might, hoping to destroy my protection and by extension, me.

I get a little disoriented as hundreds of bullets collide with me, the combined kinetic energy causing me to start stumbling backwards.

It's hard to see as several collide with my face, the loud cracks causing me to blink unconsciously, effectively blinding me.

My frustration continues to build until I've had enough! With a roar of fury I throw my hands out as an aurora of colorful energy flows from my body and collides with everything in its path like a moving wall, throwing people and vehicles alike into the air and back into the brick walls of a large building thirty feet away.

The men cry as their damaged bodies scream of broken bones and bruised fleshed. None of them have died, but every single one is hurting badly and in no shape to stand, let alone continue fighting.

The last armored van is tipped on its side, but with a quick wave of my hand it rights itself, metal groaning as thousands of pounds of armor is moved far quicker than any mortal machine could.

I snap my finger and the broken and damaged components and machinery mends itself, dents flatten out and shards of glass fly through the air and reform their previous shaped windows.

Thirty seconds of magic spectacle later, the van stands good as new, any previous signs of wear and tear completely imperceptible to anyone.

Ignoring the sounds of complaining men, I walk over to my newly acquired van and slide into the driver's seat. I fish around for the keys before realizing they probably _don't_ leave the keys to a military vehicle just idling in the car.

After a few minutes fishing in pockets I find the keys for my van. I also find some money in their wallets too, a couple hundred in total. Sweet!

I turn the keys in the engine and it roars to life. I giggle like a princess, damn this is freaking cool! Putting pedal to the metal, my van roars as I navigate through the wreckage of the combat zone and follow the clairvoyance spell I casted as it leads me through empty streets and into the winding wild woods.

* * *

Night paints across the sky as I continue my drive through the woods. It's been several hours since the fight this morning. I've had to of driven hundreds of miles through the wilderness, thankfully with my magic and the vans natural strength and off-road capabilities it's been an easy enough journey.

My tracking spell lost its strength long ago, but the local Nymphs have kept me going in the right direction.

Thirty minutes later I pull up in a small clearing and see my companions lazing around a camp fire. They rise to their feet as best they can but relax when they see me exiting the strange vehicle.

Samson's resting in a cot, his leg is wrapped in bloodied bandages and he's clearly dazed from blood loss.

His goofy grin makes my heart flutter and I can't help but smile fondly at my doofus lover. I meet him at his side and kiss him on the cheek.

"So, I see you've got a new car?" I snort at his statement. "Yeah, a nice boy gave it to me after I kicked his ass!"

He giggles stupidly, they must've given him an anesthesia or something. I frown in worry though, we're lost in the woods and without proper demigod medical supplies.

Samson taps my face gently, "Hehe, your skin is so smooth. Man, I love you so much!"

Now I'm giggling, damn they must've made something strong if he's acting this way! I kiss him quickly and say, "Alright, enough of that now. Get some sleep, we've got to find something to help you out tomorrow morning."

He mutters some kind of childish complaint, but quickly falls to sleep.

I sigh and sit on a log pulled around the fire with everyone else. I meet Allen's eyes and nod, "We've got to find some ambrosia or nectar. He's injured and we need all the help we can get. We've got a coven of lamia after us and it seems like they're indiscriminately going after any demigod they can find if those goblin mercenaries are anything to go off!"

Allen grunts in acceptance, "That makes sense. I was on vacation when Ares asked me to investigate some strange things going on in the area. If it's a coven of witches, then we need to take them out. Lamia are dangerous and we could lose dozens of demigods if we let them run loose! The only issue is finding them, monster lairs are notoriously difficult to track down and we're limited if they can turn an entire town against us this easily."

I look at Daisy, "Where do your sisters live? Are there any weaknesses we can exploit in the coven?"

Allen looks uncomfortable when I address her, trusting a monster is a mistake that kills many demigods. Though he does relax a little since Daisy actively has fought against the coven's forces side by side with him.

"My sisters mansion is a very well-hidden secret. We only teleported to it, so I don't know it's exact location. When I betrayed them they severed my connection to it, so now I've lost the capacity to travel to it with magic."

Allen groans in annoyance, "Then we're at square one, maybe less than that!"

Daisy quickly blurts out, "Wait, don't give up yet! I don't know where it is, but my sisters mentioned a 'thorn in their sides', an enemy that probably knows much about them. He's an elder manticore that's worked actively against my sisters in the past!"

"I know who that is!" Allen's completely perked up now, "He's a manticore named Dr. Thorn and works at a university a day's walk from here. If we can somehow sneak into the town undetected we could confront him for information, manticores sometimes help demigods if it's detrimental to their rivals!"

Now it's my turn, "He could have supplies too. I've got drachma's, he might be willing to trade information and medical items for some hard cash! Allen, you know how to get there right?"

He nods, "We just need to travel east, it's a large town, impossible to miss. It's probably best if only two of us go, large numbers would draw huge attention to ourselves. A two-man squad can operate in the shadows much more effectively."

"I think I have a spell that can hide us, maybe three at the max. Two people should be more than enough to handle things if they go wrong. Allen, you and I will go. You're a champion and I have magic, if the manticore tries to kill us we can take him if it comes to it."

With a plan set in motion we relax our tired bodies by the warm fire. Tomorrow is going to be an interesting day, either things will go very well or they're going to end horribly. An average thing for demigods, I suppose.

* * *

Thomas waves us off as Allen and I ride on Horse through the forest. He's assured us he can handle things with Daisy and keep Samson safe as he recovers from his gunshot.

I hurry Horse along, perhaps a bit rudely, but times of the essence now! Samson's injured and he could potentially become infected from such a nasty wound, without proper magical healing he's incredibly vulnerable.

Our 'day's walk' ended up being a couple hours trip on horseback. Horse is magic, and his speed, stamina and balance allows him to traverse winding woods far better than anything natural in these forests. Hell, I bet he could even outpace the Hunters with his capabilities!

The trees part for grass lands and a large town can be seen clearly in the distance. I quickly pray to my mother and hope my concealment spell keeps us hidden from the lamia's scrying magic.

Horse drops us off at the edge of town and disappears into the wild. He's going to remain on standby and stay out of sight while we're in public, a magic horse in the mortal world can be a beacon for a witch who's trying to sense for abnormalities.

Allen and I walk into the city center and thankfully the mortals around us stay normal and go about their daily business. Phew! Looks like my concealment spell's working, they lamia haven't taken over this town yet!

Fifteen minutes later Allen and I arrive at a large college campus.

"This is the place, I've seen him around here before when I was scouting this location in the past."

Students are protesting on the campus grounds; armed state troopers stand stoically around them as protesters cry out about injustice and other controversial worldly events.

"Damn, the war is getting worse and worse every day! No wonder Olympus is so hectic right now, the mortal world is practically in chaos right now."

He's right, Olympus is in shambles and it's likely because of world events. The Olympian council refuses to cooperate with each other, even with the will of Zeus! Minor gods are rioting across the country and the Hunt now focuses on damage control rather than monster outbreaks.

Hell, Olympus is still rioting! They started years ago and haven't slowed down since!

I shake my head free from my distracted thoughts, we've got business to attend to.

* * *

We found Dr. Thorn as he was mid lecture about some historical things. Allen and I decided to wait until he was finished, mortals would get suspicious if we just barged in and started demanding things from their professor.

Half an hour later he called the lecture over and his students quickly left the classroom, none staying behind to ask anything. I sense the mist at work, silently urging any mortal to vacate the immediate area.

Looks like our quarry knows we're here.

When the last human flees the lecture hall his voice booms unnaturally from his podium, "So, two _ants_ now approach me. I see that the champion of that oaf Ares has decided to confront me now. Well, I consider myself to be one of class. Shall we talk first, or get to the fighting straight away?"

His voice is laced with hate and contempt, understandable consider he's a manticore, but we're not here for glory. This is strictly business.

"We're here for something different, Dr. Thorn. Lamia have been rampaging across the state and we're after them. If you help us, we'll take care of them and never bother you again. All I ask is for information and supplies, ambrosia to be specific."

He tsk's distastefully from his lectern, "A trade of services, eh? Well, I suppose that's in order. Ridding me of those treacherous witches would be a significant boon, I'd have much less competition! Very well, I'll share some secrets. They house themselves in the Okenfenokee swamps of Florida, their mansion is hidden but not very well guarded. Though you should be warned, darker thing then they reside in their home. A horse of strife and discord, eyes that rage like volcanoes. Even the ground trembles beneath its' feet."

Dr. Thorn shudders, "I've met it once, that's a true monster. Don't release that beast, even I would face it with caution."

I narrow my eyes, why would the witches have a horse like that? Are they allies, or have they taken control of it like they can with mortals?

I'll have to keep this information stored, this monster sounds dangerous; perhaps we should just kill it regardless? I don't want to chance it if it's this dangerous.

"Noted, we'll take care of them. Now about the ambrosia, I'm willing to pay handsomely for it; drachma's, and lots of them."

He just growls, "Ah yes, _money,_ a truly mortal concept. No, I'll be payed differently. I want _flesh_ , yours specifically. I've had to eat the homeless when I can, and demigod flesh is a true delicacy!"

His body croaks and groans as his flesh warps and distorts into his true form. Before he can fully transform I reach my hand out and he stops shifting and freezes completely in place, his nasty yellow eyes flicking around in confusion on his frozen face.

My cutlass flickers to life in my hand as I casually walk over to the frozen beast. Dr. Thorns eyes widen in disbelief as my spell keeps him in stasis.

"Tsk-tsk, Dr. Thorn, trying to be a dick and eat me whole? That's not very nice, not nice at all. I really want to kill you right now, but killing a legendary monster is like a beacon in the mist. If I did that then the lamia would know where I am and act accordingly."

My sword finds its place resting against his neck, "So instead I think I'll leave you like this, maybe you'll be free in a couple years, maybe it's going to be forever. Who knows?"

I look around the room and spot an old antique closet decoratively standing in the corner. I grin and look at Allen who raises an eyebrow in return.

"Want to help me put him in the closet?"

Allen smiles and Dr. Thorns eyes flicker between us as we loom down evilly at him.

* * *

It's around midday when Horse drops us off back at camp. Samson's still resting on the cot, but I can tell from the look in his eyes whatever drug he was given has worn off. He sighs in relief and smiles warmly at me.

"I'm glad you're safe, when Daisy told me you went to a manticore for assistance I feared you'd have been in serious trouble with only one person as back up!"

Allen looks a little offended at that, must be the arrogance from being a champion.

I wave my hand nonchalantly, "Ah it was no biggy! With your amulet boosting my power he stood no chance at all! I'm really surprise so little people respect magic, its usefulness is amazing."

I snort to myself and Allen giggles off to the side, "Dr. Thorn is currently _in the closet_ so to speak. Maybe he'll _come out of the closet_ in a couple years!"

Samson raises an eyebrow as I cackle like an idiot. He looks away for a second, a look of _something_ crosses his face.

Now I raise my eyebrow, what's going on with him? He's only this odd when something's bothering him. I walk to his cot and kneel down by his side.

"Samson, what's wrong? You only get that look when you're upset about something."

He sighs despondently, "Mori, I need the amulet back."

I pull back slightly, "Um, can't I keep it for a bit longer? Hell, why not just let me have it! The power I have with it is incredible, I could take on anything no issue if I wear it!"

"That's just it!" He yells, "Mori, you're being changed, I can feel the desire in your emotions. The power's corrupting you, you're losing sight of who you really are! I love you so much babe, but your desire for power to prove yourself is worrying me."

I scowl down at him, "And what's that supposed to mean? Am I too weak to handle the power, is that it? For fucks sake now even you have no belief in me! I'm strong, even more with this. Why do you want me to be weak, so you're not weak, huh?!"

His voice is almost yelling in response, "Hera's sake Mori, that's not it! Just give me the amulet back and you'll see what I mean!"

In a fit of rage, I punch him across the face. I scream into my hands and rip the necklace off and slam it into his chest.

Blood pours from his nose as he cradles it gingerly, "Here's your amulet, mother fucker!"

I stomp off into the forest, Samson starts calling my name but I ignore him and continue my trek into the woods. Fuck him, first the camp has no faith in me and now him?!

I walk for a while, long enough that the skies turn red as dusk sets in the sky. Stopping in an empty clearing realization hits me, my previous fury washing away as shame fille my heart.

 _He was right._

Tears spill from my eyes as I contemplate my actions. I hurt my lover, I severely injured those innocent men back at the parking lot. Fuck, I even robbed them when I had no need to!

I sniffle silently to myself. How could I let this happen? I was so caught up with my new strength I forgot to keep myself controlled. Dammit, why am I so fucking weak?!

' _Those with power must practice the greatest control.'_

Mother told those words to me onetime, and now I understand why she did. It's because she knew me, she knew that I'd have problems with power.

I think I understand my fatal flaw now, an obsession with power.

Standing straight I steel my emotions. I have to go back and apologize, Samson was right and I need to appreciate that.

I smile softly to myself, guess he knows me better than I thought. Damn wise asshole, guess love is cruel; at least he's honest with me. He truly does love me it seems.

A stick snaps behind me. I spin around, my cutlass appearing in my hand as a spell forms in the other.

My eyes widen as I look at the _thing_ in front of me. It looks like one of the goblins, but significantly larger. He must be at least seven feet tall! How the Hades did this thing sneak up on me?

What really sets him apart is his equipment. Like the other kobalos his clothing is mostly furs, but his is supported by metal plates in vital areas of his body. Instead of a dingy spear he's wielding a sword and shield, both of which are of high quality.

Just looking at them I can tell they came from camp, and that he almost certainly looted them from a demigod he had slain.

His sickly brown eyes bore into mine as he grins wickedly, his sharp teeth release a disgusting odor from his maw.

I stand guard and prepare for a battle; my instincts are practically _screaming_ of danger. He roars ferally and charges at me, with sword and spell I meet his challenge.

Our furious battle echoes throughout the forest, and reaches the ears of one champion of Ares, Allen who mutters only a few short words.

"Oh no, _he's here._ "


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Howdy all! It's time for the quest two finale'! Woohoo, I'm going to have a lot of fun with this chapter, there should be some really cool scenes and a fun closing act! Also… it's chapter 20! Hope you guys enjoy this special chapter, I'm making it extra-long since there's so much going on and to help make up for the break in uploads.**

 **Anyways, hope everyone enjoys!**

* * *

 _End of Quest II_

 _With Samson, Summer 1966_

The sound of combat in the distance shook me away from my worrying state. Allen gave me ambrosia after he came back, but forced me to stay seated and heal while he went to look for Mori.

I was worried when I gave Mori my amulet, for a long time I was afraid of giving her things of true power. Magic has been known to corrupt people, especially when someone who's already gifted suddenly finds themselves with more power.

The roaring of battle shakes away whatever sense of doubt and fear I had. Mori's potentially in danger, I can't just sit back and do nothing!

I slide off my cot, my thigh stings in pain as my wound has yet to fully heal and break off into the forest in the direction I heard the strife coming from.

The sun's beginning to fall, the red light casting strange shadows as the forest seeps slowly into darkness.

Forest brush parts before, some from a slash of my blade and others at the insistence of fearfully Nymphs hoping to save their trees from harm.

Clanks and crashes echo eerily through the forest, sometimes it comes from the right, others from the left. My only saving grace from total disorientation is that the noise gets louder as I progress forward and therefore easier to narrow down the location.

After a minute the sounds of struggle have become very loud. I explode through the brush and find some kind of giant goblin and to my surprise Laila tag teaming Allen!

I race forward, stumbling slightly as pain flares up in my leg, and try and help out Allen before he's injured or even killed.

My worry is unfounded when in an impressive display of skill he deflects two blows from the goblin champion and the lamia an quickly jabs the edge of his shield into Laila's gut, launching her several feet backwards.

Ha! She fell for the same move twice from two different people!

Laila rises to her feet, blood seeping from the corner of her mouth as she hisses angrily at the unknown goblin warrior.

"HSSS! Skullfucker! Kill this fool and you'll earn a bonus! If you live and bring their heads to me, THEN you'll get the rest of your pay doubled!"

…Skullfucker, the now named goblin, grunts in acknowledgment and continues his assault on Allen whom duels in an impressive display of skill and strength against the goblin whom fights equally as well.

I turn my attention to Laila whose slit pupiled eyes widen as she meets my furious glare. She curses under her breath and turns around and races towards something laying on the ground.

My eyes widen, and fury wells up inside of me when I realize that Mori is lying still on the ground, likely unconscious and completely helpless as a snake witch races towards her.

With a roar a blast of crackling air erupts from my hand and charges through the air like a cannon ball at the witch who quickly turns around and swiped a hand through my spell, green fire spits into the air from her hand, but thankfully is dissipates before it touches the ground.

I grit my teeth and throw a different spell at her, a translucent javelin, and aim for her head. Laila narrows her eyes and waves her hand, crackling green energy wafts through the air and knocks my projectile off course where it shatters like glass against a tree.

She slides across the grass and stops just in front of Mori. She hops over her body and lifts her into her arms, preventing me from attacking with any other spells I know.

Before I can ask anything from the witch, she smirks at me and raise a hand and shows me, in full glory, her extended middle finger.

The in a brilliant display, white fire wraps around them like a vortex before simmering away, leaving no sign at all that people were once there.

Dammit, they've teleported!

Whooping and hollering sudden rings through the air, fuck not now! The brush erupts in activity as a hundred goblins trample through the forest and surround Allen, Skullfucker and myself in a large arena style circle.

The kobalos holler and cheer as they wave their weapons, taunting me and making violent promises of death.

Skullfucker grins and paces around Allen and myself, us demigods maneuvering so we're back to back, and raises his gangly arms in the air.

The army cheers even louder as he swaggers around the perimeter, acting like a shark circling his wounded prey.

Guess that's not a horrible comparison to make.

The cheers soon turn to shrieks as dozens of kobalos are flung through the air and whipped to the sides. I focus my vision and see tree roots shooting up from the ground and lashing out at every monster around them.

Different cries sing from the forest and the brush once again erupts in action as this time Nymphs and assorted Satyrs, dozens of them, charge the goblin ranks, nature magic sounds from flutes and urges nature itself to attack her foes.

Thomas, Daisy and Horse follow behind the nature spirits and charge with a cry of valor and crash into the disoriented goblin ranks.

Satyr's smash goblins with wooden clubs and Nymphs stab their hearts with spear shaped branches all while tree roots and branches tear scattered kobalos to pieces. My companions hack, slash and trample their way through a dozen goblins whom barely collect themselves begin vicious combat with their nature-aligned cousins.

Skullfucker roars in fury as his companions engage in battle with the forces of nature but turns his attention to us instead of helping his kin.

Allen and I face down the champion warrior across from us as a furious battle rages around us.

"Allen, who the fuck is this guy? I've never seen a goblin this big, let alone one who can combat a champion on equal terms."

He shifts his weapons and rolls his aching shoulders, "His name is Skullfucker, he's a goblin champion fighter, likely the strongest of them. He's been an enemy of the Defenders for years; his skill and personal armies have claimed the lives of hundreds of demigods over the years."

"Skullfucker huh? I wonder why he's named that!"

Allen looks at me weird, "I just told you, he's called Skullfucker! He's rumored to take his foes skulls and shag their eye sockets!"

I roll my eyes, "For gods' sake Allen, you're as dense as a rock! I figured as much, I was being coy!"

He just shrugs, "Oh, I've been meaning to ask, but why haven't I seen you at any of the council meetings?"

"Um, because I'm not allowed? Only champions are allowed to attend those."

"Well, you _are_ a champion. Your name's in the register list, I sent your welcoming letter a while ago!"

I look at him shocked, "I'm someone's champion?! To whom?! Since when?!"

Skullfucker screams and charges at us before Allen can respond. Dammit, I wanted to know which god I'm a champion too!

The goblin warrior's sword swings for our necks in lightning speed, but the combined training of two demigod champions caused him to miss as we ducked.

I go low and slash my cutlass for his legs, Allen goes high and tries to slit his throat with his javelin. Unfortunately, Skullfucker is _very_ skilled and raises his leg so my sword bounces off his metal shin armor and deflects Allen's spear with his shield.

The goblin's sword returns to slash us, but we parry with our shields, his strike gongs loudly but fails to cause any real harm.

He goes to slam us with his shield, but I disperse my sword and shield and catch it with my hands. Skullfucker scowls, but soon shrieks in pain as I channel magic energy into his weapons, causing coursing electricity to flow into them and by extension him as well.

Allen spins his spear and aims to stab the goblin in the chest. Skullfucker's eyes widen and angles his body so the spear instead collides with the small bit of metal plating on his chest.

It tings off, but he's not finished yet as the goblin suddenly swipes me with his arm and surprisingly sends me to the ground _hard_.

He goes to stab my belly, but Allen quickly jabs with his javelin and distracts him. Taking the opportunity, I pull my silver dagger from my belt and quickly throw it before the goblin can notice.

The monster squeals in pain as my dagger penetrates deep into his unarmored thigh. Allen launches a flurry of strikes that Skullfucker only barely parries while trying to move with a blade sticking in his leg.

In an instant I'm back on my feet and blindsiding him as I tackle him to the ground. The super goblin screams and tries to stab me with his sword, but faster that the blink of an eye I grab my dagger and tear it free from his leg and slash his wrist, taking his entire sword hand off in a quick and clean cut.

He screams in pain as noxious blood explodes from his arm stump. He tries to bash me with his shield but my weapon cuts through the air, it's short length allows me to angle it around the and stab him deep in the wrist.

Another shriek rings in my ears as I yank it free and cut his shield hand off as well. The screams and roars of pain deafen the battle around us as all look upon the defeated and humiliated champion.

With a victorious roar I drive my dagger deep into his putrid heart. He groans and croaks for a second before stilling and turning into a wretched pile of golden dust.

I stand to my feet, my shirt and face coated in goblin blood and stare down the remaining kobalos sprites. They freeze in horror as I hold my blade out and point across the goblin ranks, daring a new warrior to challenge me.

None step forward.

I take a single step, and all hell breaks loose as the goblins holler in fear and abandon their fight and flee into the darkening night. My nature spirit allies cheer in victory and hurl insults at the fleeing sprites.

Allen clomps a hand on my shoulder and grins at me, "Dude, you've just avenged the deaths of a hundred demigods and proven that you truly are champion material! I think you've got what it takes to be a defender, I'll have to talk with the council beforehand, though."

I tilt my head to the side, "What the Hades are the Defenders?"

* * *

After our battle with the goblin army, my quest-mates and I went back to our camp. Despite our victory we're quiet as we sit around the camp fire whose warm light helps calm our frazzled nerves.

Night has finally stretched across the sky; the silver moon seems impossibly big tonight. I guess Artemis is feeling showy tonight, huh?

Allen peeks at me occasionally as I cook some rabbits Thomas had caught earlier. I know he wants to ask me something, I can feel his curiosity and worry with my empathy powers.

"Hey, Samson?" Allen goes, "Are you doing okay? The lamia have taken Mori and you've been quiet ever since."

Daisy and Thomas quiet down and give me their attention as well, curiosity getting the better of them.

I sigh in half parts annoyance and half parts despondence.

"Truthfully, I'm quite upset. Hell, I'm worried, terrified and furious! They've hurt my friend and taken her away from me, they _will_ pay for crossing me. But, I can only take this one day at a time; we're injured, weary and low on supplies. Mori can handle herself, the lamia aren't strong and they didn't kill her outright. That means they want her alive, which means we have _time_ on our side."

My companions nod to themselves, it's the only reasonable to think things out before running willy-nilly into a confrontation with an enemy we know next to nothing about.

Who knows what the lamia have in waiting, we could get ourselves slaughtered if we don't go after them at our best or without having a proper advantage over them.

"Allen, would the manticore be willing to share any more information about the lamia? We know where they are, but nothing about a weakness we can exploit."

He grimaces, "Yeaaah… about that. Mori froze him with some kind of spell then we locked him in a closet. If we want to get anything else from him, we'll probably have to force it out. I'm not sure how long the spell she casted will last, or if he's even broken free already! A manticore is a powerful monster, we'll need to be careful when fighting him."

I groan into my hands, fucking Hades why can't anything go my way on these quests! We all agree to go after Dr. Thorn in the morning time, fighting a manticore in our weakened state is practically inviting Thanatos to come and claim us.

We eat our meal for the night and retire to the tents Daisy summoned for us. Tomorrow we have a job to do.

We're gonna go kick Manticore ass!

* * *

It was noon when we arrived at the town Allen and Mori had been to yesterday. As I had suspected, the lamia aren't trying to attack us here. As arrogant as they are, they won't dare make a move on Manticore territory, even they fear repercussions of such an act.

Now we're about to do the same thing, _twice_. Ah gods, why does being a demigod have to be so hard?

The town is eerily quiet as we travel towards to university, the magic of the mist weighs heavy in the air. Even if I'm not a child of Hecate I can sense the strength of its power.

He's expecting us, it seems.

The courtyard of the college is empty when we arrive at the gates. Nothing but the gently afternoon wind makes sound. The birds and insects are quiet, no mortals inside make a peep as we travel deeper into the campus.

Rounding a corner, we come to face a heavy fog permeating the innermost courtyard, the milky white substance is so thick we can't even see through it.

All our weapons find their way into our hands, the heavy presence in the fog leaves no room for argument about what's in there.

I summon my shield in my right arm and the enchanted fire runs down the spine of my cutlass. I nod at Daisy and she waves her hand, causing the fog to start dissipating.

Little by little the fog disappears to reveal a massive and terrifying form. The beast has a vaguely human like face with mismatched brown and blue eyes, a hulking lions body with thick and wrangled fur, and most dangerous of all is the scorpions tail with spikes jutting out from the stinger, giving it a vague appearance of a spiked club.

A deep growl, almost like thunder rumbling in the clouds, ripples through his throat.

" **Little morsels have returned, no doubt trying to finish me off while I was frozen. Hmph, I thought halflings were honorable and craved a challenge, guess I was wrong."**

He raises his body with a heavy groan, mismatched eyes glaring at us with trembling hate, **"I freed myself from the spell your witch casted not long ago; You've saved me the trouble of hunting you down by coming here yourselves. Faithless demigods always hunt trouble down themselves, all the easier for monsters to rid the world of** _ **disgusting**_ **filth!"**

I roll my eyes and Thomas yells a quick insult about Thorn being 'lame', much to the chagrin of the monsters.

"Would there be a chance we could talk this out, even if we promise to kill your enemies, the lamia?"

He just grins, mouth full of rows of serrated fangs.

" **No chance at all."**

With a furious roar that shakes the very ground, the manticore charges us with gusto.

Thomas goes right, Daisy goes left and Allen and I stay in the center of the charging path, waiting for the right moment.

Each footstep Dr. Thorn makes kicks up dirt as his claws scratch deep into the ground, saliva slobbers from his mouth as his natural animal instincts overwrites any civilized aspects he once held.

At first, he was fifty feet away, but each step in his sprinting ticks off another ten feet.

Forty feet, thirty, twenty, ten, NOW!

We duck down low, practically kissing the ground, as the monster goes sailing over our head and crashes through a metal statue some odd yards back. The impact gongs loudly as his body dents the metal statue beyond recognition.

Ouch, that's got to hurt.

Before Thorn can recollect himself, we all charge to deal as much damage as we can.

An astral spear forms in my hand which Daisy quickly casts a spell on, causing electricity to sizzle on the tip. I throw the electrified spear and hit him in the gut, the monsters body convulsing in pain as thousands of volts course through his flesh.

In a show of acrobatics, Thomas jumps through the air, spinning just to show off, and lands on the back of Dr. Thorn. Before the monster could unleash a flurry of deadly projectile spines, he grabs the tail under his arm and uses all his strength to control the direction it aims.

Poison laced barbs fly off in random directions, smashing through windows and stabbing into stones as my brother wrestles with the tail.

Dr. Thorn reaches around with a grabbing paw and yanks my magic spear from his side, pulling chunks of flesh and a small bit of organ with a thundering roar of agony and fury.

I deflect a stray projectile and race towards the monster. He lurches from the rubble and goes to gore my guts open with his claws, I parry with my shield, sparks flying as his nail scrape against the hardened metal and follow up to swipe his wrist.

He dodges my swipe and spins his body around and slaps me hard with his tail. I fly backwards and crash into the ground with a grunt of pain. I'm thankful Juggernaut is such excellent armor; the silver indestructible jacket Artemis gave me does a surprisingly good job of softening my impact.

I'm on my feet in a second and back after the manticore. Daisy's unveiled her true form and has wrapped her serpentine half all around Dr. Thorn and squeezes him like a python.

Thomas dangles from the tail, stabbing repeatedly into the crevices of the armor as Allen distracts the front end. The manticore lurches and headbutts Allen who covers his body with his shield as he too is sent spiraling backwards twenty feet.

Before he could pounce and crush Allen I leap forward and drive my cutlass into his shoulder, the wound sizzling as my fire licked sword burns the from the inside out.

Roaring Thorn reaches around and grabs my side with his claw and slams me into the ground, knocking the air from my lungs and stepping down with a paw onto my sword.

Pain erupts from my shoulder as Dr. Thorn bites down hard onto me. My jacket keeps his teeth from penetrating my flesh, but the pressure of his crushing bite strains my bones and threatens to turn them to powder!

Daisy, my saving grace, sees my predicament and extends a clawed hand and scratches the right eye of the manticore, causing him to roar in pain and release me from his mouth.

My shoulder aches in pain, but I ignore it and draw my silver dagger and drive it into joint of his shoulder, hoping to reduce his maneuverability.

His good eye widens as he spots the dagger, **"Aaagh! Cursed metal, how did you get** _ **that!**_ **Treacherous she-devil always finds a way to humiliate me, even to go so low as to gift a blade to a man!"**

Ignoring his statement, I throw all my weight into the dagger and drive it all the way into his body, even burying the handle into the flesh so he can't remove it with his claws.

I roll backwards, my shoulder flaring in pain, to dodge the swipe from his other claw. As he goes to pounce at me, Allen throws his javelin into the same shoulder I stabbed. Dr. Thorn crumbles to the ground as his shoulder gives out from the abuse and I take the opportunity to recover my cutlass from the ground.

My cutlass wizzes through the air and cuts deep horizontally across the Thorn's ribs, blood pouring out in a torrent as I expose blood vessels and arteries.

He _screams_ in agony and cranes his head around and bites Daisy's tail and starts attempting to pull her off. She hisses in pain and responds by throwing a wave of green fire into his face.

Unfortunately, he doesn't let go, even as his face burns and melts under the heat and continues to bite even harder.

Sensing her distress, Thomas tears a dagger free from the carapace of the scorpion tail and chops into one of the loose spikes on the stinger, knocking it free and catching it. He lets go of the tail and drops onto Thorn's back and stabs his dagger straight down next to the spine.

Blood squirts out and coats his face, he wipes it off and rips his dagger out brutally and drives the spine he took into the same hole he made. Dr. Thorn screams as his own poison courses into his body and triggering every pain nerve as his blood stream carries the poison even further.

He starts thrashing about, but Thomas isn't done. In the monster's state of frenzy Thomas takes his dagger and drives it in between the vertebrae of Dr. Thorn's spine, attempting to damage or destroy the nerves controlling the lower body.

Thorn suddenly bucks hard and Throws Thomas from his back; he works his paw and wedges it between his fur and Daisy's tail and presses down, removing the constriction from his body and pressing her body to the ground, pinning her trapped beneath his strength.

Daisy shrieks as he starts biting into her tail but responds by jabbing her sword into his weaker underbelly.

That'a girl.

Allen's back on his feet engages Dr. Thorn, slashing into his face and jabbing his paws.

Thorn attempts to whip his tail at us and launch spikes, but the appendage fails to move properly and jerks around; dangerous spines popping off and flinging harmlessly around us.

Thomas and I grin at each other, the poison and the spine damage paid off! He can't control his tail anymore!

With a roar our party is back in action, hacking and slashing into his thick hide; Daisy's spells burning hide away and my own manifesting in ethereal chains that slowly ensnare the manticore. He claws my dagger free from his shoulder, severely damaging his flesh, and roars in fury.

Our battle is a vicious exchange of blows; Thorn's tail randomly whips and smacks one of us away, we respond by stabbing his claws and slashing his thighs.

Slowly as the battle drags on I add more and more chains around the monster, the chains snaked through the grass and attached themselves to the walls of building around us. Just a minute more and there should be enough to enact my trap!

Dr. Thorn's movements become slow and sluggish, the weariness, blood loss and poison has taken its toll, in a moments time he'll collapse entirely.

Just as predicted, the manticore pants one final time crashes onto the ground. His good eye glares at us with the upmost hate, but otherwise makes to more movements.

" **So-"** He wheezes in effort, **"-I have been defeated. Is this where you gloat over me? The brave heroes have vanquished the evil foe, save the peons and whatnot."**

He rolls his wrist in a weak mocking gesture, **"Well, be on with it! I'd rather reform in Tartarus then wallow in agony here. Oh, and staring at your ugly faces makes this all the worse!"**

I raise an eyebrow at him. Really? He's resorting to trash talking now? Gods what a fucking child. His tail twitches minutely but I pretend I don't notice. He's walking right into my plan!

"I didn't come here to kill you, let alone fight. What I need is information; the lamia have taken something precious to me and I need it back. We know where they live but a weakness of theirs would help tremendously. A Child of Athena always has a plan, but to make one requires information. Information _you_ have."

My eyes harden as I stare down at him, I'm doing my best to appear arrogant and superior. Just a bit longer…

Thorn grins ferally, **"Ah, there's that famous halfling arrogance! And here I thought you were better. Your kind has always acted as our betters, as paragons of morality; all you are is a misguided fool. A** _ **slave**_ **for your precious Olympians."**

I roll my eyes at his dramatics. Any monster that can speak always says the same godsdamn shit; they're like a broken record at this point.

His tail twitches again but I pretend I don't notice and continue my act.

"Can we just cut to the chase here? All I want is information on the lamia's weakness, then we'll be gone. You don't want me here and I don't want to be here; so cough it up!"

He growls lowly, **"Horses, those she-snakes fear large horses. At least the older and more dangerous ones are; that** _ **beast**_ **they have chained up in their stables gave them a lifelong phobia. If you're smart you can figure something out."**

My eyes widen a little, memories from my dream flood back into my mind. For a second the feeling I got from looking into those volcanic eyes creeps up my spine, but I steel my courage and the horror fades away.

The dream finally makes sense now, why I saw that demon horse thing. If I set it free, then it will almost certainly cause the lamia to panic and make them easier to dispatch. Perhaps that's why the being in my dream asked me to free it? It wants revenge against its captors.

With Horse and the mysterious other horse, then complete panic will tear through the lamia. During that panic I can find Mori and with everyone together we can kill the lamia and end their threat for good!

The tail twitches minutely once again.

" **So you've found your plan then? Demigods always find some way to be on top, the very Fates themselves seem to favor your kind. Us monsters are always beneath your boots; once I was a great and mighty beast! Warriors of all kinds would come to face me, and like unimportant vermin they fell and were devoured. Even if I've been defeated before, one piece of information always lightened my heart. Do you know what it is? It's that no matter what happens, I always return. Halflings come and go, live hard and die young. But I'm eternal,** _ **immortal."**_

I lean in, everything's going according to the plan.

" **Tell me then, filthy peon. How do you wish to die?!"**

In a flash of movement, quick as lighting, his tail flurries out and strikes to impale me right in the face.

Having predicted this before Thorn even thought about it, I enact my plan. With a snap of my fingers, the magic chains I wrapped around him sling to life, tightening around his body and lifting him up in the air as the loose chains attached to the surrounding buildings lose their slack.

He roars as his tail is pressed to his body, chains encasing his body like a metal mummy. He struggles and writhes in fury in vain, the magic bindings are too powerful to be broken easily.

As the chains tighten his body rises in the air; five feet, then fifteen, all the way until he's suspended thirty feet up.

We all smirk as he struggles in the air, he almost looks like a caterpillar suspended in a spider's web. Daisy, who's transformed back into human form, taps my shoulder.

I look over and she smiles and hands me a portable camera. I grin and barely hold back a laugh. Thorn's eyes widen, and he starts screaming insults and curses at us.

Thomas whips out his tripod stand (where the hell does he keep that?) and sets up the timer.

We all pose in stupid positions, shit eating grins on our as the shutter flashes. Our triumph over the manticore immortalized forever; Thomas squatting and pointing finger guns at Thorn, me standing by his side and holding a peace sing up with one hand and in the other I point at the entrapped monster. Allen stands across from us, looking stoic with his bronze body armor and weapons. Daisy, the crazy lady that she is, squats with her legs out horizontally and her arms across her chest in an X-shaped pattern, a goofy smile on her face. All the while a blurry manticore yowls with a maw full of sharp teeth.

What a fucking day, dude.

* * *

After gaining the important information from Dr. Thorn, our adventure/rescue group set off on Horse's back (haha, get it?) to save our friend and kill her captors!

Wow, that sounds pretty violent.

Anyways we have roughly a week until we hit the Okefenokee swamps. Normally it would take us less time if we followed the highways, but with the lamia taking control of every town we attempt to pass through our route is limited to traveling through the wilderness.

I'm thankful for Artemis's assistance in the past, the silver jacket she gave me acts as a badge of honor and passage safely through the wilds. Nature spirits of all kinds assist us as we travel over the land, slowing down any monsters that attempt to pursue us or outright killing them as the beast falls into a trap.

The Kobalos have disappeared entirely from our radar, likely slinking back off to their caves in the mountains. The goblin Skullfucker must've been more important to their morale then I had previously thought.

He was their champion warrior, potentially even a warrior chieftain or something. According to Allen, Skullfucker has slain a hundred demigods over the years. I'm not sure how old he is exactly, but that's no number to scoff at.

He was a worthy foe despite being a bastard.

We're two days in our travels now, currently resting in our camp as the moon rises into the sky. I'm resting around our fire when something gentle brushes my ear, as if it were a gentle breeze tickling my ear.

" _They come from the forests."_

A soft, invisible voice spoke in my ear, almost as if it's a mother whispering a gentle lullaby.

A wind Nymph, I deduce.

She doesn't speak again, but I feel an urging in my mind. The unnamed spirit wants to show me something.

I stand up from my log and start slinking off through the brush and towards the edge of a cliff we set up camp on.

Thomas asks where I'm going, but I wave my hand for him to follow. Daisy, Allen and Horse choose to stay behind, likely sensing something mystical is afoot.

My brother and I creep through the small brush, I have a feeling that I should be stealthy in this situation. That danger is nearby but won't bother us unless we make ourselves known to it.

At the edge of the cliff we peer down into the forest below us. Thick spider webs coat the trees beneath us, the slink from tree to tree, covering them in a silk blanket as far as the eye can see.

Dread fills in our guts as well as a healthy dose of phobic fear. Only one race of monsters can do something like this.

 _Spiders._ Not the regular arachnid that nature created; no, the ones who responsible for this come from a much more sinister source.

The spiders of these woods are the _true_ legacy of Arachne. Massive beasts, bigger than a man and more ferocious then most monsters.

Even Artemis is careful to tread through the woods they infest.

A soft breeze flushes against my skin. Gently light forms and swirls into a beautiful young woman that lays in the ground next to us.

Her skin is tanned, yet glows a strange white, her hair is golden blonde, and her eyes are a beautiful sky blue.

She reminds me of a young female Apollo almost. Speaking of which, I still need to finish that special bow he ordered from me.

The young wind Nymph, likely the one who spoke to me earlier, looks down into the forest with sorrow. Her eyes wet with unshed tears.

" _This forest was beautiful once. Nymphs and Satyr's danced through these forests with druids of old. Then, from the lair of the lamia, those creatures came. They slew many druids and Satyr's; the tree Nymphs are now too afraid to come out and dance once more."_

She turns her sad gaze to me, _"Child of Athena, Friend of the Nymphs, I urge you to continue forward and slay the witches of the swamps. Their home is the source of this sickness."_ She waves her hand at the forest.

" _I show you this, so you may fully realize the importance of your quest. Nature is ill, the darkness seeps into our lands. Slay the enemies of nature, and forever onward you and your kin shall be welcomed into our care with open arms."_

The Nymph yawns lightly and begins to fade away, speaking a few gentle final words. _"Please, go. We…haven't…much…time…"_

Then she's gone, I hope that she's returned to the winds she carries. A feeling of sadness fills my belly as I realize that she, potentially, has faded into nothingness.

As the land becomes sick, then so too does her spirits. I send a quick prayer to Artemis, I can only hope that she and her Hunters can kill the spiders and bring the Nymphs back.

Even though I've known her for less than a minute, I pray the wind Nymph we met can return once the forest has been healed.

Shrill cries, like some kind of demonic infant ring from the forest, trees shake and crackle as some unseen battle takes place deep within the woods.

Suddenly a silver arrow imbeds itself into the ground next to us. Sensing the aura from it I know exactly who sent it to us.

Artemis herself, and likely hunting solo as to not draw the attention of her father, heard my prayer and has answered. Thomas and I smile at each other, perhaps thing will be alright in the end.

* * *

We've traveled another two days since my run in with the wind nymph. Our goal is only a few days away now, traveling through the wilds has gotten easier as increasing amounts of nature spirits assist us in our endeavor.

Even if I haven't seen her or detected any signs of her presence I know my aunt Artemis has sponsored us in some small way.

Because Zeus has ordered the Hunt to pacify rogue minor gods, the monster population and influence has progressively become worse over the years.

Ever since the favor I did for her with slaying the Drakon mother fought in the gigantomachy I've done my best to uphold her honor as thanks for the gifts she's given me.

Despite Artemis's reputation as a misandrist and unfair punishments, I can't find it in me to truly hate her. Artemis is the epitome of tough love; she doesn't show it, but she does care about demigods outside of her hunt.

Her assistance is subtle, the opposite of the other Olympians. She's been assisting us in small ways since the beginning.

For that, I'll give her honor and spread good things in her name.

I'm unsure what state we've landed ourselves in now. It's day five of our week-long trek, and we've crossed massive patches of farmland for an entire day until the sky turned obsidian and signaled the end of that days travels.

The flat prairie fields yielded to wetland marshes, the air is thankfully cool and not so muggy. I openly thank whichever Nymph's have helped us out by keeping the environment comfortable for us, a small hand rises from the water and gives me a thumbs up before disappearing back into the murky depths.

Our camp is up in less than ten minutes and our party retires for the night in the handy tents Daisy summons. She's getting better, I notice she's become less fatigued from her magic and has even created additional items with little cost to her stamina.

Everyone seems to have become better over the course of our journey, our strengths have maxed while our weaknesses have become less apparent.

If Chiron could see us now he'd be proud; if Steven and William could see me I know they'd be pleased with my improvement.

Because-because of me failing them I've spent as much time as I can be training with my martial skills and practicing stronger and stronger magics.

I refuse to fail my loved ones once again. _No one_ is dying on this stupid quest. I've already created what I've wanted (though at the cost of my eyes, man wearing glasses is annoying) and now all that needs to be done is save Mori, kill Laila and get back home.

Easier said than done.

While everyone was in their tents I chose to wait around the dying fire, sleep is hard to come by for me right now.

The stress of losing Mori, of getting my friends in danger _again_ is eating away at my heart. Every day that turns by my sanity and cool slips just a little. Bags form under my eyes and focusing on thoughts becomes increasingly difficult.

I bury my head in my hands, gods why can't I do anything right!

Someone's hand gently rubs my back, I raise my head and see my brother Thomas sitting on the log next to me.

He gives me a toothy grin and ruffles my hair.

The pit in my gut seems to close just a bit more. Even if he doesn't talk much, or talk any kind of sense when he does, Thomas always seems to silently speak a thousand words with just a few actions.

I feel courage flow through my veins and a feeling of surety washes away my doubt and self-pity.

Thomas believes in me, Daisy, Horse, Allen and Mori do as well. We're in a sticky situation but all of us together can triumph over it all!

My friends are counting on me, I _won't_ let them down. Not this time, and not ever again.

I say my thanks and goodnight to my brother, one more days' worth of travel and we'll be upon my enemy and that much closer to saving the woman I love!

* * *

The last days travel went by quickly, even if we had to ride Horse over nasty bogs and swamp land.

The equine complained the entire time much to my annoyance.

" _Gah! Laddie why do I have to walk through this muck?! You've perfectly healthy legs, have the snake lady carry me in mah' mini form, she's got the muscles to do it. You've seen her do it before ya' know?"_

"Horse, you're a horse. This is _literally_ what you're supposed to be doing, carrying people long distances over nasty terrain. Besides, aren't you a _pure-bred fire horse?_ I figure a breed as special as you could handle this no problem."

He grunts in anger, _"Bah ya' fookin smarty pants! Knowing which button to press, why I outa' show you how I handle this mud puddle!"_

His desire to prove me wrong actually cut our travel distance by a significant margin. Talking with the local nature spirits I learned that we've entered the swamps the lamia resides in. Our presence is hidden, thanks to the aid of wind nymphs, and our arrival into enemy territory coincides perfectly with the fading daylight.

We strike when the moon is high in the sky. A nighttime raid is a classic but a tried and true strategy for a small ambush party.

The witches are arrogant and undefended. We sneak onto their compound, release the beast horse they have chained, use the panic caused by his freedom to sneak into their mansion and free Mori. From there it's a simple matter of mopping up the remaining hostiles.

A few more hours trot through the swamp and the black sky has all but replaced the sun. Eerie streams of silver moon light fall from the trees all around us; perhaps Artemis and my Mother are watching us, seeing how my assault shall fare against the witches?

A large house emerges from the tree line. It's three stories and looks like a heavily aged Victorian Era mansion. Vines grow down from the high rooves and the once brightly colored paint has faded or chipped off from the muggy swamp climate. The lack of any lights gives the impression of this place being a haunted mansion.

Given that literal witches reside there, it's more than a fair comparison to make.

Thankfully the property grounds of the mansion are treated and well cared for as the muddy swamp dirt slowly thickens and hardens into proper field dirt.

They must be using magic to keep the ground of their compound thick and dry like this.

A few other buildings surround he central house. The barn is easy to identify, the two others not so much. The other building are much smaller, being regular rundown colonial style homes instead of the fancy mansion.

Their purpose is unknown to me. When I had possessed Daisy earlier her memories told me that her sisters live and operate from the mansion, but she doesn't know what the other buildings are for as she was never allowed entry.

Daisy stiffens behind me on Horse's back, I can feel her fear and anticipation with my powers. I'm very familiar with the feeling as I too felt how she did when we merged in my dream.

I crane my body around and look her in the eyes, fear is welling up hard inside of them. Thomas behind her puts a comforting hand on her shoulder, that seems to do the trick as she exhales slowly with her eyes closed.

When they open again determination hardens in her gaze, and I know now that she's _truly_ ready to face her sisters, no fear this time.

I stop Horse a bit before the tree line parts to open terrain, I want to keep him hidden so as to keep our chances of infiltrating high before shit hits the fan.

We all slide quietly off of Horse and stealthily make our way onto the compound.

Not a sound can be heard as we slide like shadows across the lawn, it seems any natural living being choses to stay as far away from this place as possible.

Thomas and Daisy split off and away from me and Allen, they've gone to place Greek fire grenade on the two smaller houses. Daisy has assured me that prisoners are kept in the mansion proper, so destroying the other building would serve to frighten and disorient her sisters.

As Allen and I approach the stables a powerful voice rings in my head.

" **So, you've finally made it, took ya' long enough. Hurry up now, I don't want to be wrapped up here any longer. Cut ma' bindings and I'll help ya'll kick the scaly hides of these bitches!"**

That demonic cowboy voice is one I don't think I'll ever forget. Whatever kind of horse this thing is is ancient and _powerful._

As fearful as I am, the lamia will fear him even more. I need every edge I can get if this fight is to go successfully in our favor.

Allen opens the barn door just enough for us to slip through. He closes it behind us and stands guard, peeking through the small crack to keep an eye out for any kind of enemy sentry.

I quietly slide through the barn, none of the animal pens actually have anything in them. Though a few have scattered piles of bones of varying creatures, some most certainly magic and others more mundane.

It's in the very back end of the barn that I find the beast from my dream. Wrapped up in golden chains that tie his body to the floor I truly stand in the glory of this horse.

Even laying down chained the body of this thing seems as big as an elephant! His fur is a shade of black so dark no light seems to reflect of it, in complete contrast to the flowing mane of luscious golden hair that seems to reflect brightly even in the near total darkened room.

Those volcanic eyes seem to bore into my heart, **"Nuff gawkin boy! Hurry up and get me outa' here, my legs have been cramped for decades and I wanna stretch! Just take that there fancy silver dagger O' yours, the moon goddesses magic will counter the witches magic and destroy ma' chains. So get to it!"**

I frown at this horse's rudeness, but otherwise comply, I need his help whether I like it or not.

I take the silver dagger Artemis pawned off on me and strike the chains, true to his word the flowing magic in the chains becomes erratic before failing completely as the golden particles dissipates in the air, leaving behind a rusty old steel chain.

The horse laughs a deep bellowing tune as the body slowly begins to rise. The already towering body gains _even more_ height as the metal bindings groan and croak before snapping completely as the sheer strength of this horse breaks them by just _standing_.

He shakes his body and the loose pieces of chain fall to the ground with a heavy clank!

Those evil eyes of volcano turn to me, **"Well I'll be damned! I'm finally free, ooooh you can't even imagine how great it feels to stretch these tired muscles. Now I can finally continue my Path of Discord! It's been decades since I could bring about some** _ **true**_ **chaos!"**

Alarm bells ring in my head. Fuck I was hoping this thing would be nicer or the holy envoy to some god! It just sounds like this guy is totally fucking evil, hopefully he's true to his word and will help with the lamia.

"I've set you free, now will you help me like you've said? The witches have taken someone dear to me and I must get her back!"

The monstrous horse just chuckles, **"Poor little colt, too weak to save his woman and goes off to find a** _ **real**_ **man for help? Boy you halflings are just as pathetic as I remember. I can't believe you actually came and set me free. I've got a future ahead of me and it doesn't involve** _ **you.**_ **"**

He rises on his back to feet and lifts his front hooves high and prepares to squash me like I were a cockroach.

" **For what it's worth, I do appreciate your help. But** _ **this?**_ **This is wild nature baby."**

Then his hooves stomp down on the ground in front of me and a MASSIVE wave of seismic energy explodes into the very earth around us.

The barn shakes _ferociously_ , and I barely have time to activate my shield and barrier spell before the roof collapses down upon me.

* * *

My ears are ringing as consciousness fills my body once again. Everything is dark and _extremely_ warm, and a crushing weight presses down on my chest.

With a heavy grunt and tremendous effort, I push with all my might against whatever is pressing down on top of me.

My strength training pays off and the debris from the roof is pushed away. The scent of smoke fills my nostrils as I blink my bleary eyes.

After a moment my vision sharpens, and I take in the hell-scape around me. Red fire roars to life around me as the swamp trees and buildings burn to a crisp. The very ground seems to be spewing fire as cracked fissures along the earth carry the fire and create terrifying vortexes of angry torrential heat.

I idly note that swamp gas must be producing such an awe inspiring, and terrifying imagery.

A singed log frame pins my legs down, so I start doing my best to push the beam off. Unfortunately, my arms were weakened from freeing my chest a second ago, the wood barely moves from my legs.

Much of the debris around me burns ferociously, but thanks to the jacket Artemis gave me to fight Cacus the fire leaves me cool and completely unaffected.

The sounds of battle and cries of war snap my attention back around me. The lamia have poured from their den and slither about the grounds, hissing shrill cries as they unleash furious green spells against my friends who deflect them and engage the witches in fierce sword and shield combat.

Hacking, slashing and spells sizzling ring in my ears all around me as my friends fight desperately and bravely against these snake women!

I hurriedly attack the log on my legs with all my waning might, pushing as hard as I can against what must be a several thousand-pound support beam.

The ground shakes, like the footsteps of the giant's years ago. I look up and the demon horse I freed peers down at me in disinterest. I feel like an ant beneath him as his majestic nigh _divine_ like form towers over me like an Olympian.

He snorts and steam puffs from his nostrils, **"Survived that eh? Guess you aren't as weak as ya' look."**

The demon looks out across the fire-stricken battlefield, seeming to rejoice in the carnage of the war between my friends and the lamia.

" **Now** _ **this**_ **is what I'm all about. This calamity and discord, that's why I exist. I march with thunder across the fields and bring my mother's greatest gift to all mankind. Discord, Strife, with just those man changes. Power shifts and society is flipped up on its' head. You see boy, I'm not a monster. I bring about the change man tries to stop."**

I follow his gaze across the combat and desolation, **"Look around at this act O' man. This here is how the natural order is. People die, things burn; from the ashes something** _ **new**_ **can be born. Then it starts all over again, and I'm there for every licking moment of it. You've done the world a great boon freeing me, but your time has reached an end, partner. Consider this a mercy, you won't have to see the carnage or blame yourself because you'll be squatting down with ya' pals in the Elysium fields."**

My eyes stare in hate at this _demon_. I can't be beaten now, I refuse! My friends are in danger and I need to save them.

I raise a shaking around to cast a spell, fireball, astral arrow, ray of frost, ANYTHING!

…But no magic flies from my hand. I'm too exhausted, so I drop my arm and go limp. Reality crushes on my shoulders, is this really the end? Am I truly going to fail my friends once again? It seems so.

The demon gazes lazily at me.

" **Finally given up and accepted your fate have ya'? Bout time, fool. Gods what a pity of a sight, the lone hero brought low in front of his friends. It's to be expected, I'm the Horse of Discord. No point in gloating now, I've got places to be now. Don't worry that pretty little head of yours,** _ **I promise I won't miss this time.**_ **"**

He raises his body in the air and aims to stomp down at me once again, this time likely to make do on his promise not to miss.

I close my eyes and do the best I can to accept my fate. Calmness washes over me and strangely I feel an odd presence within my body. It almost feels like… mother?

The overwhelming desire to open my eyes commands my body to obey. Doing so I see the black demon coming down towards me in slow motion.

Time crawls at a snail speed as my death approaches impossibly slow. Then, as if someone flipped a lever, time speeds up to normal and something heavy and massive slams into the demon and knocks it back a dozen feet.

The log on my legs is thrown away by the impact and I finally comprehend my savior.

Horse stands before me and the demon, he neighs in triumph and glory as fire belches from his mouth.

" _Hands off me handler ya' filthy old horse! No one's harmin' this'in when I'm around!"_

The demon growls in annoyance, **"Now wot in tarnation are you** _ **doing?!**_ **You're a monster horse, same as I. We should be on the same team! Leave that filthy halfblood behind and join me! Together we could bring about such** _ **glorious**_ **Discord; you'd be happy and free from everything they tried to make you be!"**

Horse snorts distastefully, _"Oh quit your jabberin' I'm more than happy to have me handler. I don't care about no chaos because muh' boy's all I need ya' see? Who cares what I was bred for, I do what I do well. I'm happy with the path before me, can_ _ **you**_ _say the same?!"_

The midnight horse roars in fury, **"You shut your trap** _ **colt!**_ **Why is it that you get a handler and I don't?! I've been around for a thousand years, not one Child of Discord has come for me! It's not fair, I have to ride alone while everyone else gets their wish come true?! I've had it up to here! If I can't have what I want, then I'll make damn sure no one else gets their happy endings!"**

With a feral roar Horse and the demon collide, their battle shaking the very earth.

" _Go laddie, I'll handle this buffoon! Go save the girl mate!"_

I nod at my horse and for a split second something shimmers in his eye before the harden in focus.

Standing I turn away from the crashing equine and make my way through the war zone and towards the thankfully unburning mansion.

Lamia hiss as I pass them but a quick slash across their chests deters them from following me.

Thirty yards from the mansion a lone lamia attempts to stop me, only to be met with a javelin in her heart. Death is instant, and I race to the pile and scoop up the weapon.

I turn and throw it back to Allen who catches it midair and carries the trajectory straight into a witches skull.

As much as it pains me to run _away_ from the fight this is part of the plan. I must save Mori, my friends can handle things outside, I believe in them.

I rip open the door and continue my path into the main hall of the mansion, the entire building shakes as the demon's powerful muscles make the very earth tremble under his might.

Ignoring my thoughts of awe, I start racing around the halls of the mansion, almost _everyone_ has their jails in the basement.

After a few minutes of searching I think I find what I'm looking for. A stray door within the kitchen gives me the impression of a basement entrance.

Tearing it open I make my way deep into the darkness. Light fades quickly so I cast an illumination spell that manifests as a hovering orb of light that follows over my shoulder.

The dark stair case soon makes way for a deep and dark chasm beneath the foundation. An overwhelming feeling of dread fills my heart as I peer down into the deep void. It must travel down several hundred feet, my light spell only showing me at the most twenty before the crawling darkness eats the light like a void.

Something rattles and slides in the pit, and an echoing hiss flows upwards. Whatever is down there must be massive, massive and ancient.

I quickly turn around and continue my trek back up the stairs, whatever down there is not Mori, it felt even more ancient and evil than the demon horse outside.

My heart pounds as I burst back into the kitchen and slam the door shut behind me. I take a moment to catch my breath, that _thing_ in the void practically ate my courage just being near me.

Whatever it is I don't care, we need to get out of here soon before it breaks free from the constant shaking of the ground.

I make my way into the upper levels of the mansion; the ground floor lacks any signs of a jail cell. As I pass through a side door on the second level, something seems to beckon me. I stop and look at the door I passed, opening it I'm met with a magnificent sight.

Treasure; gold, jewels and weapons of all kind sparkle from the flight amount of moon light peeking in through the window.

I ignore the trivial things, they aren't what called me into this room. I move a massive pile of gold and unveil a silver stick of some kind buried half deep.

Removing more gold, I realize what this truly is, the bow of a Hunter of Artemis. I shake my head in pity at the thought of what must've happened to the poor girl who owned this originally. The lamia must've killed her or tortured her to get this from her hands.

I take the weapon in my hands and gentle words seem to breeze into my brain.

 _Luminous, bow of Abigail the gentle, whom loved all._

Small tears drip from my eyes, but I know they aren't mine. Artemis channeled through me to tell me about this bow and her sadness lingered behind for just a moment.

The bow glows and turns into a magical snake of silver light that worms under my jacket and wraps around my arm.

My skin tickles and singes for a moment, but the pain passes in less than a second. I roll my sleeve up and see the light burned itself into my arm and left behind a simple but elegant tattoo.

In beautiful line art, the tattoo reveals a young woman with light hair and a flowing chiton aiming her bow across my forearm, as if her unseen arrows lead across my arm and ends at my fingers.

I rub my fingers gently across the marking, I send a prayer of thanks to the goddess of the moon for yet another gift. I will appreciate her symbol and wield the magic bow in honor of her fallen hunter.

Suddenly something wraps around my waist and squeezes hard. The air is compressed from my lungs as my body is thrown about the room, into the walls and ceiling as whatever is holding me holds me slams me around repeatedly.

Suddenly I'm jerked back and carried into the hallway, slamming into the walls as I now see that the tail of a lamia squeezes my arms to my sides, preventing me from reacting in defense.

My head slams hard into the wall and darkness quickly over takes me, the last thing I see is the leering emerald eyes of Laila as she flips me her middle finger and grins cheekily.

Man… what… a… bitch…

Then everything goes black.

* * *

I wake with a choking gasp; my body aches and whines as unseen bruises likely litter my body.

Gods, Laila must've beaten me up or something when I was out.

My vision is blurred, and I realize my glasses have been knocked off. I feel around on the ground and my fingers brush against something small.

Feeling them some more I sigh in relief and put my glasses back on. My vision clears and HOLY SHIT.

I look around my environment and spin in confusion as the very world seems to have been broken and slapped back together by a twelve-year-old.

The ground warbles and twists before suddenly jutting around at perfect mathematical angles. I'm in some kind of warped field, trees and brush is scattered about that follows the spiraled ground before cutting off, I look in the sky and see massive islands of dirt that float around aimlessly in the midnight blue sky.

Shrill crackling fills my ears, it sounds like someone's repeatedly cracking a mirror eternally with no rest. The shattering sounds get louder and louder, then through the twisting ground, dozens of… _things_ appear.

At a glance they look like piles of moving glass in vaguely recognizable forms. He shard crawl and crackle as they flow almost fluidly around the mass they create.

One of them groans and several shards suddenly fly out at my, instinctively my shield form on my arm and the barrier spell protects me from the projectiles.

I rub my finger and will my cutlass to appear, only it doesn't. I look at my finger and see my ring is gone! I feel around my belt and sure enough my silver dagger is missing as well.

Feeling my chest and horror passes through me, my amulet is gone. Without it I have no magic, I only have Juggernaut and my shield.

Something ticks in my mind and I suddenly remember, Juggernaut has those magic flowers Rhea wove into it.

I pick a green flower off my jack and toss it at the amassing horde. It puffs on the ground getly and nothing happens. Before I can even voice my complaint, the flower explodes into a mass of thick and waving thorny vines.

They tentacle like vines whip around slap through the glass things, knocking the shards loose and sending them spiraling in all directions.

I cheer a little before my eyes widen, the loose glass crawls through the grass and forms their previous shapes once again.

En masse the horde starts ripping into the vines, tearing it to tiny shreds until an unrecognizable plant matter pile is left.

I curse and start running to the edge of the floating island, the ground banks sharply to the right and as I follow the warped ground my feet stay firmly attached, gravity seems to follow whatever is 'down', so the warped floor can be run on no matter what angle it goes to.

I reach the edge of the floating island and peer down at the strangely colored sky that fills this world. I'm reminded of a Van Gogh painting as the colorful sky seems unreal, as if it were painted.

Another island floats some thirty odd feet away from the edge. I curse at my predicament; the glass horde is shuffling after me and I can't make this jump!

Grabbing another green flower from my jacket I send a quick prayer to Rhea, gods I hope this works! I toss the flower like a frisbee, it spins across the way and hits the dirt edge of the neighboring island. For a second nothing happens, the mass of vines grows rapidly from the edge and worms its way through the air and connects to my island like a bridge.

After a few seconds enough vines have grown to make a sturdy walkway. I hurriedly cross the natural bridge and make my way onto the next island.

The horde behind me starts crossing the vines, a few launching stray glass projectiles at me. I scowl as I block them with my shield. Looking down I search for a particular flower I remember using a while ago.

Grabbing the red flower, I pick it off and chuck it into the center most part of the bridge. It explodes in contact like a grenade and destroys the vines, causing most of the horde to plummet into the beautiful void below.

I turn around and run into the forest that covers this floating island. After a few minutes I stop and start panting, my lungs and body aches in agony from everything that's happened over the last hour.

Something cracks in the brush next to me, I spin around and to my surprise find myself holding the bow Artemis turned into a tattoo on my arm.

My bow lowers as a familiar voice like a melody rings into my ears.

"Samson?"

Mori emerges from the bushes looking worse for wear, her clothes are in tatters and shallow cuts mark all along her body.

Thin red lines coat her arms and face, but her beautiful emerald eyes shine in joy and relief. My bow dissipates back into my arm and I race forward and embrace my beautiful lover.

Our arms wrap tightly around each other as we hold our bodies close, the contact between us makes any sense of worry vanish.

We're back together, everything will be okay now.

Mori leans away but I hold her waist close to me own, "I-I can't believe you're here! Gods I'm so happy you came for me; this place is _wrong._ "

She looks around at the strange landscape around us, "I've never felt anything like this! This feels like a different world, yet _not_ at the same time. I think we're trapped in some sort of illusion spell but knowing these bitches any harm here is also harming our real bodies."

Mori leans forward and rests her head on my chest and mumbles into my shirt.

"I've been here for days. Gods I'm so sore, these glass things have been following me around forever. I haven't had a lick of proper sleep since I've gotten here. _Please_ tell me you've got a plan."

I rest my chin on her head, her messy hair tickling me as I embrace her tightly.

"I, have no idea."

She just groans, "Whelp, guess we'll have to come up with something."

* * *

We spent several hours relaxing in a meadow we found, thankfully none of the glass things came for us so we rested our tired bodies and fell asleep next to one another.

When we woke again we told each other what we've been up to in our time away from one another. She was enamored with my tale of our groups adventure across the country. Of the various Nymph's that helped us and the stray monsters that followed us.

She was particularly happy with how I dispatched Skullfucker, no doubt pleased that the goblin that defeated her met a terrible and humiliating end.

Mori then told me of her time in this strange world; of the winding islands that twist and bend like warped reality, and of the strange monsters that inhabit this strange painted world.

"I think these glass things are the result of some form of crack in reality, these things are the imperfect mirrored forms of monsters from the real world. Throwing us into this illusion world dragged along poor copies of the real thing, if you pay close enough attention you can see the mirror monsters vaguely look like real creatures."

Now that I think back on it I can see what she means. A few of the glass things looked vaguely like empousa or giants.

Mori sighs and twiddles her thumbs, "Samson? I think I've found out something important. Something _big_."

I raise an eyebrow at her, "What is it then?"

She sighs despondently.

"I think- I think Max's father is a Gargarean, worse yet he's their king."

Um, what?

"How the Hades did you come to that conclusion? This world is just empty nature and glass monsters."

"That's just it! A few days ago, I was attacked by a lone monster. This one was unique because it was _much_ more lifelike than the other abstract creatures. This one looked just like Kolbe, but he wore Greek armor with a symbol on his chest. Two swords and a shield, Samson, that's the crest of the Gargarean king!"

It takes me a moment to process.

"…Then what should we do? I know Max, he has no clue about that kind of stuff. _We're_ the ones who introduced him to the hidden world of demigods. Why would Kolbe not train him as a warrior then, why encourage his son to be a lawyer?"

She shakes her head, "I just- don't know. I don't think we should tell him, Max has a _mostly_ normal life with Eris now. Let's just let them be happy, this stuff is already complicated, if Kolbe returns from war and starts something then he has to deal with us _and_ Eris as well!"

I nod my head in agreement, Max is our friend and we'll always have his back!

Mori and I lay down on the grass and she rests her head on my chest as I idly stroke her waist with my thumb.

She sighs happily and melts into me, I smile and close my eyes. It's good to be back with one another, our time apart was killing me.

Suddenly Mori whips around and straddles me and starts opening my jacket hurriedly.

"W-whoa babe! I get you missed me but are you sure you want to shag in the dirt?!"

She scoffs and rolls her eyes, "No you horny boy, I just thought of how to get us out of here!"

Mori reaches into my opened coat and pulls out a pair of circle frame sunglasses that are made of gold metal that glows just faintly.

Oculus.

My eyes widen in realization, I know what she's planning!

"You said these things can 'see the absolute truth'? If this is an illusion world then that means Oculus can break the spell! Quick, put them on!"

Before I can say anything, she shoves the glasses onto my face. At first nothing happens, then suddenly a loud sound like thunder rips through the air.

We stand and look into the sky and see what looks like a long crack in the sky, white light faintly seeping from it.

Then thunder rings again as another crack form, then another and another!

The very sky is cracked like a broken mirror and spreading. The ground beneath us shakes and a quiet screaming like sound pours from the cracks in reality.

Then, like an explosion, the cracked sky erupts into blinding white light. We cover our eyes as the light overtakes the entire world.

When we open them again Mori and I are standing in a large and dark room. I recognize this place instantly as being the lamia's mansion.

Something groans in the corner of the room. We look over and see Laila whining as she grips her head. I put Oculus back in my jacket and examine my body. My weapons have returned to their rightful places.

Mori and I march over to the weakened lamia, she groans weakly as we stand over her.

"Ugh, why do you demigods have to be so clever? No one's broken out of that spell before, you were supposed to die!"

I nod at Mori. She snaps her fingers and Laila's body is forced into leaning against the wall.

Laila coughs and struggles, but breaking her spell must've taken a large toll on her mana and stamina.

She's completely helpless.

"So, we doing any kind of speech? Your kind always has the last say and I'm but a helpless maiden. You should've feared me, I've killed many Children of Athena over the decades."

I glare at her in response.

"Why should I fear you? I killed ones close to me and here I still stand. You can kill your family and stay the same. I kill mine and become stronger and MUCH more furious than you. No, you should be afraid of ME!"

Mori tires to placate me, but I ignore it. My brothers are dead, and It's my fault. I'm the one who killed them.

Laila senses my troubled emotions and licks her lips as her half-lidded eyes seductively drink my body up. She rubs her thighs and tries to act coy, speaking softly like she's an innocent girl.

"Will you take me then? Isn't that what you boys always do, take the maiden to her bed and spin her world around? Why don't we have a go at each other, I'm sure all parties would enjoy our little coupling."

Her words are honey, but I can tell what she's trying to do. Charmspeach is a powerful ability, but Mori and I are stronger. Her words have no effect.

"Why not do it here? It's an empty room, nice and clean. I'm sure the _big strong man_ would like to have two beautiful women servicing his every desire. So how about you let me go and get to the down and dirty, eh?"

My silver bow shimmers to life in my hands. I pull the string back and an arrow shimmers into existence as I aim right for Laila's heart.

Her eyes widen in fear and tears stream down her cheeks. Her mouth is closed tight, and she quakes silently as death stares down at her.

It looks like she's finally accepted the inevitable.

She is right about one thing though, now is an excellent time for a speech.

"Laila, your desire for control has spread darkness all around this country. Your spiders attack the wilds and drive nature sprits away. Your lust for domination has led to the ruin of hundreds of lives. You've kidnapped my friend and endangered others; in the name of my Mother and Lady Artemis, I will kill you here today."

My eyes harden as my frustration from finally hits me like a truck. Tears trickle from my eyes as I stare down at my true enemy of this quest.

"This is for Abigail, my friend Daisy, and all other demigods you've killed over the years. I hope you _rot_ in Tartarus."

Then I loose my arrow, and it finds its' place in her shriveled heart.

Laila gasps from the impact, blood pools out of her wound as she limply grabs the arrow in her heart.

She shakily looks at us one last time and raises a middle finger at me and grins.

"Have… fun…with… **Kampe**."

Her head drops, and she goes limp. Her body slowly turns to golden dust that piles on the floor. I look down at her remains, a feeling of melancholy hits me.

Is this real? Is she actually dead?

Mori puts a comforting hand on my shoulder.

"Babe, let's get out of here."

We turn around, Mori guides me through the mansion and back to our friends. I'm still dazed from this entire ordeal, the stress and adrenaline have taken its toll, but it's all over now.

 _We won._

* * *

We're back outside and discover our friends stand triumphant over piles and piles of monster dust. Horse tells me that the strange demon ran off after my friends worked together and drove him away. From there it was easy to finish off the surviving witches.

We all embrace in one big group hug, we've done it! We beat the witches, and by extension we've ended their dark magic that's been poisoning nature.

Horse lights the mansion ablaze and we all sit back and watch as it starts burning to the ground.

I lean against Mori and rest my eyes, Gods how I wish we were back in camp. Allen speaks up next to us and asks Mori, "Hey, Mori? Why did the witches kidnap you anyways?"

"Oh, they wanted to try and force me to bend the minds of some strong monsters they captured. They thought I could control powerful beasts for them. Too bad witchcraft isn't my specialty. I'm a black mage, I fight, not control."

"Huh, what monsters did they have then?"

"That giant horse in the stables was one. There was one more, but I never saw it. They said she's chained up in the basement, a summoning gone wrong I think."

Wait… hold the fuck up. What did Laila say earlier? Have fun with Kampe? 'SHE'S CHAINED UP IN THE BASEMENT?

I'm up in an instant.

"GUYS! WE NEED TO GET OUT OF HERE! IT'S KAMPE IN THE BASEMENT, WE HAVE TO LEAVE _NOW_!"

Mori's eyes widen in fear and the rest of my party looks unsure.

"Um, are you sure Samson? Kampe's been missing for millennia, there's no way the lamia summoned and trapped her."

The roof of the burning mansion suddenly explodes as a massive black shadow flies through it. Debris rains down everywhere as the shrill cry of an ancient beast tears into our hearts.

The shadow encircles the compound before landing with a heavy thud on the burning roof of the mansion. She flaps her wings once and powerful gusts of wind blow us back and extinguish the fires entirely.

She shrieks a loud and shrill cry, terror claws its way into my mind as her evil serpentine eyes glare down upon us.

The clouds covering the moon part, and the newly freed light reveals the terrifying form of Kampe.

She's almost like a draconic centaur, she has the upper body of a woman covered in scales and the lower half of a dragon with a long and spindling scorpions tail. Her scalp is covered in snakes, just like Medusa, and the large wings of a dragon sprout from her back.

I can barely stand in her presence, the fear she radiates buckles my legs and soon I crash onto the floor.

Is this it? This is how we go, killed by Kampe right after we thought we had one? I guess this is how all demigods meet their end, killed when they celebrate their victory. Lives cut short by a more powerful monster then they should have ever encountered.

Something crosses into my vision, it's hard to move my gaze away from Kampe, but I do. My eyes meet that of my brothers. His filled with determination, mine with fear.

He extends a hand down at me, the moon behind him makes him seem almost like a god, like a savior. I steel my courage and take his hand, I don't know what I was thinking. Kampe is strong, but we can beat her!

With all of my friends together we will succeed! No evil dragon woman is taking our moment away from us. This is _our_ time, _our_ glory.

Thomas pulls me to my feet and pats me on the back. My companions gather their weapons and together we face down Kampe, no fear is within us as the beast scowls in annoyance.

Then, like a train, she jumps from the roof and slams into the ground _hard_. The shockwave sends us tumbling but we handle it well and engage the great jailor.

Sword, Spell, Javelin and knives ring into the hide of the massive monster. Her body is large, like several elephants pressed together and molded into a being of nightmare. Horrifying faces bubble across her skin and yowl and scream at us.

We just stab the eye holes in response.

Our attacks don't even faze Kampe, our weapons just bounce off her hide or leave a slight scratch on her scales.

Kampe smirks at our ineffective attack but doesn't otherwise react. She's clearly enjoying our vain attempts at injuring her.

Her scorpion tail flings to life and whips us all back several yards. We collide hard into the dirt and debris. Thomas is the first one back to his feet flurries his twin daggers all around Kampe's body, probing for a weakness.

She rolls her eyes and kicks Thomas to the ground. She puts a dragon paw on his chest and starts pressing down slowly, her eyes sparkle in delight as she squeezes the life from my brother.

I roar in rage and summon my Hunter's Bow. Silver light encompasses my body like an aura, power and strength rush through my body as I aim the bow at Kampe's side.

The arrow the bow creates glows with power, and when I release it the arrow manages to pierce Kampe's hide just a little. Only the arrow head wedges into her soft flesh beneath her skin, but that's all I can ask for in this moment.

She turns and glares at me, hate pooling from her eyes as noxious black blood seeps from the wound. She knows that at least one of us can hurt her now.

With a roar she charges me, only to scamper back as white-hot flames coat her body. Horse neighs in defiance and charges Kampe, my friends follow suit. We rally with new confidence knowing that Kampe isn't totally invincible.

Our charge is met with a flurried attack of rage. Kampe lashes out with her tail and slashes with her claws. We're blown back and broken by just a few hits.

Kampe leers down at our damaged bodies, Thomas groans weakly on the floor and Allen's immaculate bronze armor suit is dented and scratched, he's even missing a few pieces.

Daisy was thrown back and lays limply across a destroyed section of house, her tail twitches every so often and she limply grasps onto the air. Mori groans through gritted teeth and clutches her leg, no doubt broken from being whipped by Kampe's tail. Horse neighs weakly as he tries and fails to rise back to his hooves.

I cough and blood spits out onto the ground. I was punched once by her and I'm pretty certain she broke most of my ribs if the pain I'm feeling is anything to go on. Even with the temporary blessing that I'm pretty certain Artemis gave me it still isn't enough.

She's just too strong.

Thomas cries out and stands on shaky feet. He grins like a maniac and does a halfhearted come-hither gesture at Kampe. She grins and stomps over towards Thomas. Being the crazy man he is, Thomas pulls out a candy bar from his pocket and eats it slowly as he grins at Kampe.

Fury flashes across her face for a second before a relaxed smirk crosses her face. She reaches down and grabs Thomas. Lifting him in the air, their faces meet in equally psychopathic grins.

Horror fills my belly and I almost hurl when her jaw unhinges and extends impossibly wide and swallows Thomas whole.

I cover my mouth and tears spill from my eyes, gods no please! Please don't take another brother away from me!

Sobs wrack through my body as I slam a fist into the ground. I've failed my brothers, _again_.

A shadow covers my body. I look up and see Kampe leering down at me, reveling in my agony as tears cascade down my cheeks.

All I feel is numb now as, like Laila, death looms over me.

A clawed hand reaches down and cups my chin gently. She lifts my head up and exposes my neck, her clawed finger traces my trachea and my jugulars.

Suddenly I feel the point of her nail poke into my skin. Guess she's going to slit my throat, what a way to die.

I close my eyes and silently pray to my brothers for forgiveness. I couldn't even make it to twenty.

Kampe suddenly cries out in shock and pain. The side of her boy starts writhing and rippling like something inside of her body is alive and clawing its way out.

Wait… Thomas you are a fucking maniac!

A knife stabs out from her belly and starts dragging down her hide. She cries and bellows in agony and starts clawing into her exposed organs, attempting to pull out the man-sized parasite that's cutting her body up from the inside.

We all cheer weakly as Thomas cuts himself free and plops to the ground like a fish out of water. He gasps and smiles at his actions, no doubt excited from doing some of the wildest shit I've ever seen.

Our victory is short lived as Kampe's stinger drives itself into his chest. He gasps as the appendage tears through every layer of his body and stabs into the ground beneath him.

Kampe removes her tail and blasts into the air with her wings, sobbing shrilly as she disappears over the tree line and out of sight.

I scramble over to my brother, ignoring the pain of my broken body as I hold my dying brother close. Tears spill down my face as I hold him close, his poisoned blood gushes out sickly from his wound and coats my chest.

Thomas reaches a shaking hand up and cups my cheek. His weak eyes meet mine, and somehow he still has mirth in them.

It's inevitable, his death. I can't save him now, no amount of ambrosia or magic can. All I can do is hold him tight as he passes over into Hades domain.

Watching the life fade from his eyes is something I'll never forget, even if I want to. His arm drops down and his body goes limp in my arms.

I close my eyes touch his cold forehead to mine as I sob in softly. I can feel my friends gather around me and place gentle hands upon my back.

I can't bring my head up to meet their eyes, the pain of it all is too much. I just can't face the people I've endangered, the people I've _failed_.

Once again, I've killed my brother.


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: Chapter 21 time! As per tradition this is a future chapter. We've got a fun cameo this chapter, I can't wait for you guys to read it! Anyways I'm sorry for the long wait last chapter, that one was a beast and a half to write. We should be back to regular uploads now that the finale' chapter is finished.**

* * *

 _With Annabeth, Spring 2011_

"THE LAST JEDI IS A CINEMATIC MASTERPIECE!"

"YOUTUBE WILL ALWAYS BE A FAIR COMPANY!"

"TELL JASON TO WATCH HIS BACK LOL!"

By the gods dealing with cursed insane campers sucks. I've been helping Will with Cabin Nine while I wait for an older camper to meet me again.

Percy and Nico have been complaining like _babies_ while we wait. Like Mom told me once, _'Knowing as much as you can will only benefit you. Always know what you can before a journey, knowledge is the greatest ally a demigod can have.'_

Will pats my shoulder, "I've got it handled, Annabeth. You don't have to worry about them, they eat, sleep and do... _other things_. Why don't you go help Percy and Nico out? They've been complaining all day and I'm sure they'll be getting into trouble without you there."

I snort distastefully, "They get into trouble even if I _am_ there. If you say you can handle then I guess I'll go, I probably should be there when Sam arrives."

"So Sam's coming back, is it for the quest? As far as I know he's been away from camp for a while now, never thought he'd be back any time soon."

"Sam's father was friends with my brother from the journal. He might know more about this quest, or at least things related to it. I want to know as much as I can before heading out, you never know how handy some beforehand information can be until you need it."

He nods appreciatively, "Makes sense. Guess I know why Percy's pet name for you is 'wise girl'. Geez, you two have _no_ shame whatsoever! Flirting like that in public, whatever will the children think!"

I blush and punch him in the arm, "IT'S NOT FLIRTING."

I smooth out my shirt and get my cool back. I have a reputation to uphold, Annabeth Chase doesn't lose her shit easily!

"It's only a nickname, nothing more."

He rolls his eyes at my weak-I MEAN totally well thought out answer.

"Whatever you say." He peeks out the window, "Looks like Sam's here if the squealing girls are anything to go off of."

Good, now that he's here this quest is one step closer to getting truly started.

* * *

A horde of girls crowd around someone when I step outside from the Big House. They squeal and shriek like they're at a concert or something.

My younger half-sister walks over and squints at the man as he desperately tries to fight off the fangirls.

"…Is that Andrew Garfield?"

I shake my head and ruffle her hair. She swipes at me and does a tiny little glare. Daww, she's adorable!

"He's not Andrew Garfield, I did think the same thing when I first saw him though. That's Samuel Strife, Child of Eris and well know psychopath. One of the strongest demigods I know of, and that's saying something since I know all of the children of the big three!"

She looks curious, "Could he take on Percy?"

"Fuck no, Percy would kick his ass!"

"Are you just saying that because he's your boyfriend?"

"…I don't have to answer that."

She better wipe that coy smile off her face before I throw her into the lake!

"Well what about Thalia?"

"I'd say it's a good match. Thalia hasn't really been relevant since book three."

"…What?"

I wave her off, "Nothing, nothing. Just a fourth wall break, nothing to worry about."

She just stares at me dumbly, "…What?"

We're quiet for a second, her stormy grey eyes staring at me like I'm a crazy person. Huh, now that I think about it she looks EXACTLY like I did when I was twelve. What did Percy say my hair looked like, princess curls?

Yup, princess curls.

"Shouldn't you be archery practice right now?"

She looks away sheepishly, "I'm not good with a bow. I miss a lot and the Apollo girls always make fun of me."

I make note of that, I'll have Will talk with his younger cabin members later.

"Well, who cares what they think? There's things you're good at, and things you aren't great with, don't beat yourself up because someone's better than you at something. There's things you can do that those girls could never imagine, so cheer up, you'll get better in time."

She gives me a big grin, "Thanks Annabeth, you're the best!"

You're damn right I am.

She waves at me as she runs off, and I get a little nostalgic. I remember being that little and helping Percy prove his innocence by finding Lord Dickheads thunderbolt.

Gods that was less than six years ago, so much shit has happened in between then. I shake my head free of my morose thoughts, I don't want to get caught up in the past and start crying (again.).

I look over and Sam's still being assaulted by a bunch of little preteens.

"Andrew you're sooooo cute!"

"Can I have your autograph?!"

"FOR FUCKS SAKE, I'M NOT ANDREW GARFIELD!"

Okay I better go help him out before his fans tear his clothes off or something.

"Alright, clear off girls! Leave him alone and get back to your activities, him and I need to have a chat _privately!"_

"…Does that mean I can have Percy then?"

I glare at her and she yelps and runs off, the posse of preteens following suit.

Sam dusts off his leather trench coat, "Thanks for the assist, those _things_ are like piranha's or something, they kept trying to take my coat off!"

I haven't seen Sam in a while, but he hasn't changed a huge amount since we'd last seen each other. His hair is a shade of black, Onyx if I'd guess, and like all children of Eris, his eyes are a startling red color.

Huh, he pretty much _is_ Andrew Garfield. Gods I really do see why people thought he was a Child of Aphrodite when he first came to camp, _he's gorgeous._

"Okay, now why the fuck am I here? I'm busy planning with Hylla and she doesn't like me going anywhere alone. Something about property damage and self-harm I think."

Aaand there's the part of Sam that really makes people worry, his incredible ability to get into trouble _literally_ anywhere he goes. If you think Percy's bad about it, then you should just listen to Sam's stories. You'd change your tune quickly.

"I need your help with a quest."

I hand him my brothers journal and he raises an eyebrow.

"The hell is this?"

"It's a journal, usually you _read_ them… You _can_ read, right?"

He glares at me, "YES I can read! What I meant is _why the hell am I reading this?!"_

I roll my eyes and smile, messing with Sam has always been pretty fun.

"Just read it, you'll understand why I want you to by the end of it."

He snatches it from my hand and starts skimming though the pages, mumbling grumpily about IM's, asshole women and reading.

* * *

The journal snaps shut as Sam finishes reading it. He closes his eyes, likely lost in his thoughts. From what I know, Sam's relationship with his father was complicated. He told me once he never really knew much about him, that Max never told him about his past. Learning these things about his dad must be fairly shocking.

Sam opens his eyes and looks at me, his gaze is hard and focused.

"Why didn't we IM about this? Making me come back here is _really_ unnecessary."

…Okay so he's just annoyed. Great.

"Have you seen the video quality of IM's recently? I'm not reading out a book to you because the feed is too grainy!"

"Hey! I'm doing my best!"

We jump and look around. A shimmering image of a woman with olive skin, black hair and brown eyes glares at me through an IM.

Oh fuck, "Oh, um, sorry Lady Iris, I meant your IM's are top quality, never been better."

Sam snickers as I blush in embarrassment, Gods why can't I catch a break?! I hope I don't piss off Iris, if she refuses to do IM's for me anymore that would be a huge problem!

Iris waves her hand and huffs, "Whatever, look I'm just passing a message along. Athena wants you to meet her before you leave. She said to call her after you're done preparing for the quest."

"Thank you, Lady Iris. Um, I'm still okay to use IM's later, right?"

She looks up and taps her chin with her finger, "…I guess you can. I'm making a good profit from the amount of calls you send to your boyfriend, it would be bad for business if I cut you off!"

Iris laughs as my face flushes even more and cuts the message before I can yell at her.

I avoid looking at Sam, but I can practically _feel_ the shit eating grin on his face.

"So, Annabeth is a bad girl now and insults gods right to their face? I thought that was my job!"

"…Shut up. Anyways you've read the journal, can you tell me anything about 'Samson'? He's important to the quest I'm about to go on!"

He rubs his stubble as he idly plays with the journal in his hand.

"Yeah, I've got nothing. Dad never told me anything about himself when he was young. Though _Mori_ is… vaguely familiar. I feel like I've heard it before, but I can't really remember. It's kind of… hard for some reason."

I raise my eyebrow as Sam rubs his temple in confusion, 'hard to remember'? Percy described a familiar feeling during the time Hera took his memories and he thought he was a Roman demigod. Has someone taken memories from Sam then? Who would though? It can't be a god because they have no reason to, heck _no one_ has a reason to.

I huff in annoyance, "Great, then I still don't know any more about him! Gods why does any information about demigods from the past have to be so hard to come by!?"

Sam looks off in the distance, his eyes seem a little glazed over. I go to shake his shoulder, but he jolts and his eyes clear up. He reaches into his jacket and pulls out a small picture. The picture is of a man holding a small infant in his arms.

I take in the details more. The man looks short, he's dressed in a nice suit and his darker hair is turning grey. He looks fairly stressed, yet still happy. The baby is wrapped up in a blanket, but I can see that their eyes are a deep red color.

Is this… Sam and his father?

He flips the picture around and runs his thumb along the back of the paper, and a strange feeling flows through my gut. The last time I felt something like that was when I was on Circe's island, it feels like… magic?

Wait, that _is_ magic! Where's Lou?!

* * *

Lou Ellen's face is hard and focused as she stares intently at the back of the picture Sam handed to her. She rubs her chin as she finds some meaning in the back of the paper.

Lou runs her finger along the back of the paper, small sparks sizzle and pop as they follow her fingers path.

"Hey, what the hell are you doing!" Sam voices his complaint, it must look like Lou is lighting his picture on fire or something.

She angles the picture so he can see that it's not burning. Sam calms down a little, but still seems on edge. This picture must mean a lot to him if he's getting this possessive.

After a second of running her finer along the back, the sparkles stop and Lou leans back onto the steps of the Big House.

She rubs her forehead and groans.

"Gods that took a lot out of me! I don't know who casted that spell, but It took all of my mana to reveal the message. Whomever put that spell there must be _obscenely_ powerful. I've only felt a few spells that strong before, and that magic came from my mother!"

She hands me the photo and I read out the message on the back, "It's in safe hands Samson. Always. 8472."

We all share a look, what's the significance of this message? What's in safe hands, and what's with the numbers?

I hand the picture back to Sam who puts it back in his jacket. Lou looks over at Sam and squints at him, "Hey Sam? You might want to investigate into your memories. I can feel lingering traces of magic that took memories from you a long time ago, maybe Mnemosyne would help you?"

Sam reels back a little, clearly shocked by the revelation, "Someone took memories from me? Ah fuck, that sounds like something important to look into. Dammit, I'm getting married and now this shit pops up!"

I look at him surprised, "Oh my gods you're getting married! Sam I'm so happy for you!"

He turns away sheepishly, "It's not _that_ big a deal!"

Before I could get any more out of him, the door to the Big House opens and Mr. D walks out with a bunch of random things in his arms. He looks down at us and scowls.

"Great, now they're squatting on my footsteps. Shoo, shoo! Shouldn't you be on your quest miss Annabelle?"

He looks at Sam and his eyes narrow dangerously. Sam gulps and rubs his neck unconsciously.

"And _why_ are you back Mr. Cowboy? I thought you were off running around in your underwear with those Gargarean a-holes Ares always boasts about. Finally get tired of killing women because they wouldn't date you?"

Sam scowls fiercely and stands from the stairs. Unfortunately, it's not that intimidating since he's at the bottom step while Dionysus is the top.

It's almost like when a teacup dog is trying to size up a larger dog like a pit bull or something.

He points a finger at Mr. D who raises an amused eyebrow.

"Alright listen here you immortal piece of…!"

Lou taps the side of his head and Sam crumples to the ground unceremoniously.

Mr. D snorts and I groan into my hands. Lou looks at him as he snores _loudly_ on the ground. She looks at me and back to Sam.

"I'll just… bye."

She grabs his back legs and starts dragging him away, his face scrapping against the pathway as she does.

Ouch, that's gonna hurt when he wakes up!

Mr. D laughs as Lou drags Sam's face across the dirt, "Ha! Drop him again on the way out for me!"

"Mr. D!" I scold him, "That's inappropriate for a Camp Director to say!"

He waves a hand at me dismissively, "Bah! No one cares, he's an ass hole anyway."

Sam snores loudly, "…You're… an asshole…"

Mr. D and I stare dumbly at Sam as he insults the Wine God _in his sleep_.

He points a thumb at Sam, "Is this guy for real?"

I just shake my head in response, "I don't even know anymore with him."

"Oh!" I suddenly exclaim and Mr. D jumps in surprise, "Mr. D, does the number 8472 mean anything to you?"

He tilts his head to the side and thinks back on his memories, "Oh right, that's probably what she meant."

"Wait, who meant what?"

He waves me off _again._ Gods I'm getting sick of him doing that!

"Nothing, nothing. Go look in the attic, there should be a safe in the corner somewhere. If aqua-lad cleaned up right in there like I told him, you should find it no problem."

I perk up, a safe in the attic? This might be the information I'm looking for!

* * *

Gods, this place _stinks._ Percy was right, this place smells like a corpse. No wonder the oracle left this place and took over Rachel as a new host, she smells infinitely better than this place!

Percy's 'good job' cleaning the attic really isn't as good a job as thought he did. This place is as still disorganized as the lines for souls in the underworld.

It took me about ten minutes of digging around boxes and other trophies of war, but I finally found what I'm looking for.

Buried under a mountain of boxes is a small celestial bronze number combination safe, no bigger than a throw pillow.

I pull it from the pile and set it on the floor. I punch in the number code from Sam's picture and the safe clicks open.

Excitement fills my chest as I grin like a child in a candy store, I _love_ opening loot up like this! I probably get it from playing Legend of Zelda so much when I was a kid. Gods, Percy would call me such a nerd if he knew that!

I reach into the safe and pull out a small leather bound book. I flip through the pages and my excitement falls completely, it's a bunch of notes and symbols about stuff that I have no clue about.

Magical light conversion? Liminal chrono spheres?

What the Hades are those?

Huh, a ring that turns into a flaming cutlass? Dude, that sounds _sweet._ I flip through the pages some more and I think I understand what this is.

It's a note book. Similar to Daedalus's laptop, this notebook is full of blueprints for inventions and other mystical items.

What's this? I read the title of one of the pages, " _Seeing Stones, Orbs of Dodona Sap."_

Dodona trees? Haven't those been lost for ages? I flip over to another page, and something slips out and drops to the floor.

I pick it up and turn it around in my hands, it's another picture. Looking in the picture I see a young man and a woman holding hands and smiling into the camera.

The picture is old, the color on it has warped and faded severely, but the basic color is still there.

The man looks around eighteen years old, same as the woman, his hair is black and wild like a bird's feathers. He almost looks like a girl since his face is smooth and rounded, his features aren't very defined like most boys are.

His eyes are what gets my attention most, they're a very light color of grey. No mistaking it, he's a Child of Athena.

I shift my gaze and look at his companion, she's a very beautiful young woman. Her face is long and smooth, her hair is so blonde it's almost white. Like the boy, her eyes draw the most attention. They're a shade of emerald so bright and vivid you'd think they're _actual_ gem stones.

Hazel would love this woman's eyes, she's always had a thing for precious gems.

It looks like they're standing in front of the Athena cabin, but it looks nothing like how it did when I first came to camp. The steps and the front design are totally different, I only know it's moms cabin because of the shining number '6' above the door.

A strange feeling wells up in my gut, I feel almost _sad_ looking at this. Here's a picture of one of my brothers I've never met before, and likely never will.

I sigh in frustration, why can't Camp Halfblood have a place like New Rome for Greek demigods? I could meet elder demigods and learn so much from them if there was a safe place they could live in peace!

This poor boy and girl were probably killed only a few years after this picture was taken, Camp kicks you out after you get to a certain age and from there they have no truly safe place to be.

There's nothing to stop a monster from breaking into their home and killing them while they sleep.

I slam the book closed, Gods why does this have to be so frustrating! I know Luke was wrong in starting a war against Olympus, but there are somethings I agree with him on, no matter how against the gods they are.

Does Olympus actually care about? Or are Demigods handy expendable things that you let die young so they never get to the age where they're wise enough to know how shitty it is to serve Olympus?

"You know, when I asked Iris to send a message to you, I thought you would try and respond to me just a bit quicker."

I yelp and spin around, tripping over the safe and landing on my butt hard.

My mother just raises an eyebrow and looks down at me neutrally. I flush for what must be the millionth time, gods why do I keep embarrassing myself today?

She makes no attempts to help me back to my feet, "Hello mother, sorry I didn't get to you sooner. I was caught up in the mystery of this quest, time just flew by I guess."

I laugh a little, hoping to break the tense mood. She doesn't laugh with me.

"Yes, history is quite a fun thing. I don't come to Camp often, but this quest of yours is quite personal to me."

I blink my eyes at the revelation, how in the world is this quest personal to mom, _why_ is it personal? She has a stake in this quest, so what's the significance of these inventions my brother created?

Mom seems to know my thoughts by just reading my face, "I won't get into the specifics of this quest, all I want is for you to come back to me after it is finished. Samson was my favorite child, there's much I'd like to know considering this quest is related to him."

Huh, that's kind of… surprising. As far as I've known mother has never chosen favorites, heck she's barely involved with us at all!

Other gods find sneaky ways to meet their children, be it through poor disguises or Hermes showing up at camp to make a delivery and signing paper work _for fifteen minutes_ , and having his children be around him while he does his business.

I cough awkwardly into my fist, "Soooo… What sort of things should I be looking out for? Is it just, report back? Or should I be aware of specifics?"

"I trust you'll use your judgment and find things of importance, Annabeth. You're one of my smartest children, I have faith in you to succeed the most in this quest."

We stand there staring at each other awkwardly, it's always hard to know how you should act when talking with mother, let alone actually standing face to face with her!

Athena raises an eyebrow at me, "Usually a smart demigod would make use of the opportunity of meeting their godly parent in the flesh by asking for something. Most ask for a hug."

"…Can I have a hug."

"No."

Fuck, this is _really_ awkward.

"Why's Samson your favorite child?"

I'm just throwing something out there, I don't have anything super important to ask her that she would actually tell me.

Athena's gaze softens just slightly as she seems to be lost in fond memories.

"Ah, that's a good question. He was an individual of many talents and was acquainted with many gods, even Artemis liked him. She considered him family, I dare say she thought of him as a friend. She'd deny it though, Artemis is obsessed with her image, but she's far more accepting of men then you'd ever realize."

Her eyes focus on me and for a second, she seems… unimpressed?

"I really wish he had been here for the wars, he is by far the most versatile child I've born. He would have been an even greater asset than you, likely would've handled events far more effectively too."

My whole body seems to freeze, mom has always been a straight forward woman. Her thoughts are her own and she has no qualms about raising them.

Still, it doesn't make it hurt less when she compares you to someone else and tells you they're just a better version of you.

Mom looks at the watch on her wrist, "Ah, time's up. I must be off, be sure to contact me as soon as you can when this quest is complete."

She shimmers and vanishes into thin air.

I sit down on the safe and run a hand through my hair. I just need a few minutes, that's all.

No one needs to know my mom made me feel worthless and cry.

* * *

Gods, Medusa's statue garden shop gives me the creep even six years after we killed her.

The petrified expression of horror are immortalized for eternity as her victims are decorated all about the grounds.

I feel sick to my stomach as I finally appreciate the true tragedy that is this woman's work. I pass by a statue and I stop and look at it sadly.

It's a young boy, only three-years-old.

He must've gotten lost and Medusa brought him into her home, promising him food and love only to murder him and display his corpse as a statue.

Percy and Nico are quiet as we move through the rows and rows of statues. Gods, how did I not notice how many there were when we were kids?

The air feels heavy here, almost as though it were sick. I spot Grover's uncle Ferdinand who's now covered in graffiti and missing an arm.

I scowl at the treatment these people have been given, it seems when Kronos's army camped here some of his monsters had the time of their life desecrating the last memories of these poor people.

Nico looks around the garden, "This place is sick with death, so many souls met their end here."

Percy looks to Nico and asks hopefully, "Are their souls still trapped here?"

Nico smiles sadly, "No one has the power to keep souls trapped like that without drawing my father's attention. These people passed into the underworld long ago, they're in their appropriate afterlives by now."

Percy and I smile softly with knowledge, at least these people are dead and not trapped within a stone prison forever.

We walk through the garden more when we suddenly here something grunting. I get low to the ground and sneak along the wall.

I look back at Percy and Nico who stand there confused, I point an angry finger at the ground behind me and _thankfully_ they know what I want.

They squat behind me and we sneak along the wall and peek around the corner.

Looking around the corner we spot the source of the grunting. A young man with fluffy black hair and pale skin is tugging on a strange red sphere a statue is grasping in their arms.

I raise an eyebrow as the man grunts and groans, cartoonishly trying to free the orb from the statues iron grip.

With a loud crunch, the fingers on the orb break off and drop into the grass.

The strange man takes the orb and looks dumbly at his handiwork, "…Whoop, sorry man."

He grabs the digits and tries putting them in the statutes palm, a couple drop so he stacks them loosely as best as he can.

"Just, uh… sorry…man."

Percy and Nico start snickering behind me. I turn around and glare at them, smacking Percy's shoulder to make him shut up.

"Boys, this isn't funny! That's someone's corpse!"

Nico grins cheekily at me and Percy, "You're right, it's not funny. IT'S HILARIOUS!"

I glare at them, but it's ineffective and they burst out laughing loudly.

I yell at them to shut up, but these stupid _boys_ just keep laughing like Hyena's! A couple punches to their arms shut them, and we look back around at the boy.

The boy… who is now looking at us with wide eyes.

Wide, _grey_ eyes.

Something about him is uncanny, and oddly familiar. I think back and suddenly it clicks.

The picture in the safe, Mom's interest in this quest, the line from the prophecy; _'With the help of the creator you will find one,'_

This man, this young boy who only looks like he's twenty is the source of the problem back at camp.

This is my brother from fifty years ago, my brother Samson.


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: Heyo guys, back for a new chapter! We head back to the past now until the very end of the next quest, we'll get to how Samson is in the future later. For now, we leave it at a mystery! Not much to say here, this might be a longer chapter but it's going to be a one-off one though. It should be pretty fun though, we get some more from Richard this chapter!**

* * *

 _With Samson, Summer 1966_

Tumnus bleats in surprise as my arrow lands in the back of his skull. He drops to the ground dead, and I smile at my little victory.

My bow dissipates back into my arm and I admire my handiwork. After the… _unfortunate_ incident back at the lamia's mansion, Allen, Daisy, Mori and I have been traveling back to Camp with... with Thomas's body.

His body's been wrapped in a blanket we salvaged from the ruins and Horse has been carrying us all as we follow the coast towards New York.

Holding his body in my arms as we travel has been one of the worst things I've had to do in my life. That cold, cold mummy has only been a reminder of my failure for the past several days.

By the Gods the _smell_.

Running into Tumnus has been a pleasant surprise. After he found us for the lamia in San Francisco he must've collected some reward and tried making his way towards the forests in Canada.

Unfortunate for him we traveled the same path he took, and even more unfortunate for him is that we are _faster._

He ran like a coward the second he saw us, and only a few seconds after he got pegged by my fancy new silver bow. Man, I really like this thing. Unlimited arrows and a hidden weapon that will always be available to me?

Dude, hell fucking yes.

After Tumnus we found ourselves in New York City and damn, I hate this place. Dealing with New York traffic on Horseback is hassle and a freaking half, even with a magical horse that can run at highway speeds.

More than once I had to scold Horse when he tried flirting with the Carriage horses when we took a shortcut through Central Park.

" _Oh come on now, ya' know I'm a pretty steed. Why don't I come back sometime and we get a pint at the pub, what'ya say?"_

" _Fuck off dude I'm at work! Go bother some other Mare, this one's got standards!"_

I tug Horse's reigns and wave an apology at the confused coachman. His horse snorts indignantly and we part ways.

" _See that laddie? That's how you get the numbers!"_

"Or a restraining order."

" _Shut it!"_

I laugh a little at my horse's antics, we've gone a long way from him trying to kill me in a forest, and from me killing his brothers in said forest.

We have a _very_ special origin story.

The body in my arm shifts and I scramble to keep it from falling off the side. I get a tighter grip and hold Thomas's body closer, the smell of decomposition hits my nose and I swipe away the flies that try and gather around him.

After a few hours we managed to wedge through the city and find the road that leads to camp. Horse knows the way back to camp from here, so I tell him to go on autopilot. We're all quiet again as we travel along the main road to Camp, the warm light of the sun giving us hope for an easy journey home.

It's a safe trip, but I'm anything but hopefully. I don't actually feel much right now actually. I feel sort of… empty.

Demigods live fast and die young, it's a hard reality we all have to face.

But the feelings you get from losing someone close? Those wounds never close, you can only pray in vain you'll meet again in Elysium.

Dying huh? Is-is this _really_ worth it? Most of my loved ones are in the realm of Hades, I maybe have a couple years left in me until some stray horde of monsters kills me while I try and make my way in the boring recesses of modern life.

What if I just…

I shake my head.

No! Life is the greatest gift given to any person, I refuse to give into death after my brother's selflessly gave up their gifts so that I could carry on!

Mother offered me sanctuary in her temple after I complete my creations, surely she'd allow Mori and I to settle there and run it as her keepers?

She has to, I've lost so much that's dear to me in her name. She _owes_ me at this point!

We begin to approach the mist-barrier and a strange pressure begins to fill the air. I stop horse before the invisible barrier and look back to my companions.

"Do you guys feel that? Mori, do you have any idea what it is?"

She looks down in thought, "It's strange, but it feels like it's in turmoil. The best thing I can say is the mist is being stressed by something."

"Is it an attack? Has something bad happened?" Allen says.

Mori shakes her head, "I can't say. Whatever has happened is through the barrier, we'll only figure out if we go through."

"Um, can I go through too?"

"I give you permission Daisy, we burnt your mansion down so it's only fair we give you a new home."

"Yay!"

I tap Horses side and we cross the barrier.

* * *

…What the Hades happened to this place?

I had sent Horse back to the stables after we rounded the hill into the actual Camp grounds. As we followed the Cabin's trail towards the Big House the true desolation of some unknown tragedy becomes apparent.

Fog rolls through the trail, you can barely see a hundred feet in front of you as it wraps around the damaged and ruined cabins of the Olympians.

The once shining metal roof of Apollo's cabin has been scuffed by something, almost like it was charred by fire.

The Hermes Cabin is missing a wall and it looks like the door was torn open. Various rubble and miscellaneous equipment from the camp store is strewn about the trail.

Deafening silence hovers in the air, no birds sing, no Campers mull about their activities, and even the Nymph's from the forest lay silent.

I adjust Thomas's body in my arms, "What… what's happened here?"

Suddenly something thumps into the body in my arms. I look down and what the fuck? WHY'S THERE AN ARROW IN MY BROTHER'S BODY?!

Absolute rage courses through my body but I gather my wits, anger only clouds your judgment.

My hair raises on the back of my neck and I instinctively duck, another arrow whizzes overhead. My eyes scan through the fog, trying and failing to find some bearings of my foes as the strike cleverly from the unnatural fog.

I place Thomas on the ground and my friends form a defensive circle, all our backs to each other as we survey the edge of our vision in the fog.

A few arrows take pot shots at us, but our skills and defenses render them useless.

The fog is unmoving, and the only sounds is the croaking echoes of arrow meeting shield. We slowly spin our circle as rustling feet scrape from somewhere within the fogs cover.

As if a switch had been clicked, the fog explodes as screaming men and women race after us, cold bronze glinting in the gray light.

I deflect an overhead swing with my shield and kick the woman back, a sword slaps my ribs but fails to cut through Juggernaut.

Hissing from the impact, I bring my sword around and slash at my attacker. They parry with a shield and go to hack my shoulder.

I punch their sword with my shield and disarm them. A wicked pommel strike to their temple crumples them to the ground. I duck when my instincts flare again and spin my leg around and knock an enemy to the ground.

They groan out a "Fuck" as falling in heavy metal armor hurts like a bitch.

I stomp their face and they too are rendered unconscious.

Mori and Allen tag team a particularly large foe. She blasts his weapons from his hands and summons her astral vines to ensnare his body.

He struggles to free himself but Allen crumples him to the floor by whacking the side of his head with the blunt end of his spear. Daisy struggles to hold out against a particularly skilled fighter, they strike and parry until he catches her wrist and leaves a nasty cut along the length of her arm.

I see red and the man is blasted thirty feet back by a cannon ball blast or air. He slams into a tree and crumples indignantly to the floor. No one hurts my friends.

I ignore my guilt and summon a great amount of magic to my sword hand. After a moment popping energy like a sparkler sizzles out from my fist. With a heavy slam I drive my fist into the ground, light explodes outwards and drives everyone around me to their backs.

Mori and Daisy, being that they're magic users, protected themselves with their magic. Allen stays on his feet because of the weight of his equipment and the bracing of his body. Our attackers were completely unprepared and as such were sent piling to the floor. After my light magic fades, Mori and Daisy drop their protection and wave their hands, summoning powerful magics.

Mori's astral vines burst from the ground and ensnare half a dozen enemy fighters. Daisy waves her hand and snakes hidden in the bushes around us emerge forward and jump with lightning speed and wrap around the necks of the remaining few bad guys, their fangs hover dangerously close to their jugulars but don't otherwise move to kill.

A few of our attacker's struggle but give up when they understand the futility of their situation.

I walk over to the most armored fighter and kick their helmet off. They hiss from the strike and my eyes widen when I realize who they are.

"…Marcus?"

The Apollo councilor waves a hand and gives me a bloody smile, "Oh, hey Samson! How'd the quest go? I honestly thought you were _dead!_ It's been almost two weeks!"

I roll my eyes at the bubbly Apollo leader.

"It was a fun one until the end. I have some more friends at the very least."

"Cool dude, friends are cool! Why's it bad though?"

I look sadly at Thomas's wrapped body, Marcus follows my sight.

"What's that?"

"Thomas."

"Oh."

We're quiet.

"…I'm sorry for your loss man." He rubs the back of his neck softly, "…Also, my bad about the arrow."

I walk over to Thomas's body and rip out the arrow from his side.

"…Yeah."

"…"

I get a better look at Camp now that the fog has been stirred up from the fighting. _Every_ one of the cabins has some serious damage to it. The biggest surprise is the Big House itself, to most it looks the same as it always has.

But with the ability to cast and sense magic, an _impossibly_ powerful and invisible barrier shield surrounds the entirety of the house.

I shake myself from my awe and turn back to Marcus.

"Care to tell me why campers just attacked me and my friends?"

He perks up, "Oh yeah! Directors orders, anyone using the road is to be detained and brought in for questioning."

"You tried to kill us with arrows. This may come as a surprise, but sharp objects going fast tend to cause death."

He looks over at the guy I blasted into a tree.

"Well… you didn't really hold back with _that_ guy. Is he dead?"

The man in question groans softly in pain. Answers that question.

I wave my hand at him, "Semantics. Now why the hell is Chiron having campers attacking visitors?"

"Dude you've missed a lot! Chiron doesn't run Camp Half-Blood anymore, David controls it now!"

?

"How the hell is the freaking _Ares_ councilor running the camp?! Who would think it's a good idea to give that asshole power!"

"He just kind of took power, your brother kidnapped Chiron and locked himself with the Hermes and Demeter kids in the Big House! Richard said he's in charge, but David isn't having any of it, now there's a drug war going on but your brother's days are numbered!"

Hearing a blonde pretty boy cheerfully talking about the impending doom of one of my last living brother's is very unnerving.

Also, WHAT THE FUCK RICHARD!

I look at Marcus, "Thank you, Marcus. We're done here."

"Happy to help! Think you can set me fr-" I cut him off my stomping his head hard, sending him into Hypnos's domain.

Mori snaps her fingers and the vines grab all of the Apollo campers and throws them in the trees and tie them to the branches.

I take Thomas back in my arms and look back at my friends, "Let's go, _Richard_ and I need to have a little… chat."

* * *

The barrier around the Big House parts enough for us to pass through and closes behind us. Thankfully mother deigned me some information on the workings of the magic around camp. With that knowledge I learned the secret to passing all security magic in camp.

I walk over to the door and kick it open, the lock tearing the wood from the frame as it flies open and reveals the inhabitants inside.

Dozens of Hermes and Demeter kids stop their activities and freeze like deer in headlights when they see me. A few go for weapons, but I use my telekinesis and freeze their bodies.

No one bothers me after that.

I walk through the house and head towards the War Room, it's only logical for Richard to be there since he's started an _actual war._

Sure enough he's in there looking over battle plans with the Demeter and Hermes councilors.

The Demeter councilor is a short girl, likely just above five-foot, but very athletic. She looks like she could run forever and then some. Her hair is a deep black and her eyes are a rich brown. She's definitely seen better days; Her clothes are torn, burnt, ripped and other equally nasty adjectives.

The Hermes councilor is also in the same boat as he stands across from her at the table. His hair is a dirty blonde and his eyes are a light green color. As opposite to the Demeter councilor, he is just as in person too.

Where she's small and athletic, he's tall and lanky. I'd say he's almost like a baseball player, not very toned but still an athlete regardless.

Standing at the head of the table is my brother and apparently now a drug lord. Like all Athena kids his eyes are a stormy grey. He's on the shorter end but still taller than the Demeter councilor. His hair is a deep shade of black and he huffs angrily as his companions bicker amongst themselves.

"We have to head over and take the armory, we're down on weapons and armor. We'll be slaughtered when they find a way to break the barrier!"

"There's no way we can storm through and capture it! Our fighters are weary and hungry, we don't have the stamina to make the run! One step at a time, go to the kitchens and get some food!"

"Lizzie! You just want to get food because you've run out of candy! I thought Demeter girls were obsessed with grains, not fucking sweets!"

"Are you calling me fat, _Gordon_!"

"No, I'm calling you obsessed!"

I stomp the ground and their heads snap to me.

"How about you all shut up and tell me what the _fuck_ you guys have done to my camp!"

Richard comes around the table and awkwardly hugs me, avoiding Thomas in my arms.

"Oh thank Gods, you're back! Listen, I've fucked up man!"

He runs a hand through his greased and ruffled hair.

"I don't know how we got here man! I was smoking some special pot Mr. D grew and I blacked out. I woke up two days later and Chiron's tied up in the attic and most of the camp is trying to kill me! Fuck man, you've gotta help me out here! Apollo's coming to camp soon and he can't see what's happened here! He's my biggest client and I could lose him if he sees how bad things have gotten!"

…Sigh.

I walk around Richard and place Thomas on the table. He raises an eyebrow but doesn't otherwise say anything.

Lizzie gasps as I loosen the flap and unveil Thomas's cold face. Richard stills and gazes hard at Thomas's dead expression.

"Lizzie, Gordon? Can we get some privacy please?"

They quickly shuffle out, closing the door behind them as they do. Now it's just us three brothers alone once again, a bitter sweet reunion.

"How-how'd this happen?" Richard's voice is quiet and strained, him and Thomas were always close. _Very_ close.

"It was Kampe, she was chained in a chasm and was freed at the end of our quest. We fought her, but she was too strong. Thomas sacrificed himself and drove her away. He saved all of our lives at the cost of his own. Richard, he's a _hero._ "

He's silent.

"…Did he get some good hits on her?" He asks with a wavering grin.

I grin back, "Oh yeah. She swallowed him whole and he cut his way out! Bitch ran away crying and licking her wounds."

We laugh softly at the antics of our brother, only Thomas would do something so crazy. I hope mother truly appreciates Thomas, he's legendary just by himself.

Richard looks down at Thomas and tears stream down his face as he chokes back a sob.

"Fuck man, we can't just leave him here to rot. We've got to get to the burning grounds. He deserves to have his shroud burned. It's just…"

"Just what, Richard?"

He sighs, "David's setup his war camp there. We have to draw them away if we're going to burn him. Samson, we're in a tough spot. He outnumbers us five to one and we're starved and under armed. Joseph's MIA, no one's heard anything from him since this whole thing started."

Now it's my turn to sigh. Ah fuck, one quest end and now another begins far too soon.

"We're outnumbered but we've got allies on our side. Mori is here and I've brought Allen back to camp. Just those two are enough to give us an edge, but I've got even more too. I invited a new friend I made into camp, she's a powerful lamia with useful magic. We can go and raid the kitchen, after that we raid the armory and gather back here. We'll rest and arm ourselves then go and confront David. With Allen on our side we'll take him down and camp can return to normal."

His eyes go wide, "Allen's here? Thank the gods for that! He could take on the whole Ares cabin and come out on top! If we want to raid for supplies then I think two small strike teams will work. Allen, Mori and Gordon can go and raid the Kitchen's; You, me and Lizzie can get the weapons. The enemy will have to handle two situations and that will weaken their horde numbers."

"Good, we've got a plan. Chiron's in the attic, so I'll go and release him. We need him if we're going to really take the camp back."

Richard grimaces, "Yeeeaaah… how about we avoid that for now? I don't want to deal with Chiron _quite_ yet."

He flinches as I glare at him, "Richard, I'm going to set him free. You caused this situation, now be responsible and let me do this. Chiron's the one who'll set everything straight, but he needs our help and we need his."

He doesn't say anything as I turn around and leave him alone in the War Room with Thomas. Perhaps he'll have some closure alone, none of us were really good with crying around others.

I survey the forces we have at our disposal and I grimace at their state. These campers are truly beaten and downtrodden.

Wounded rest against the walls while many groan as hunger rips into their bellies. Nearly all are bruised and battered, and as I thought, poorly armed and armored.

Only two or three have practice armor on, the rest wear shorts and torn orange shirts. They have weapons around but only half of them are armed, the rest have nothing but their bloody fists.

For Athena's sake, this place is a cesspool of violence and pacifists! Demeter campers are softer demigods, they create life that sustains life, fighting has never been in their nature.

I'm thankful the Hermes kids are better fighters by trade. As the patron to travelers, Hermes kids are naturals when it comes to fighting and traveling. Sojourners must always be on the lookout for danger I suppose.

I move to head upstairs, but Lizzie stops me first.

"Hey Samson, I just want to say I'm sorry. Losing your loved ones is always… hard."

My eyes soften, long ago Lizzie's twin brother was killed by a cyclops as they ran for camp. She lost her brother and Satyr right on our borders, only she survived.

She can sympathize with my loss, and for that I'm appreciative.

Lizzie reaches into her bag and places something into my hand.

Confusion crosses me as I take in the strange object. It looks like the handle to Joseph's cane, but only just that. The grip is T-shaped, with one side being longer and is made of reflective Celestial Bronze. It's detailed to have feathers that run along the handle and turns into an owl's head on the long end of the grip, the eyes of the owl seem to have rubies inlaid into them.

Damn, Joseph has _class._

As I examine a little more I notice a small bump on the handle. I press the bump and it clicks, the cane clicks and clanks like clockwork and slowly the body of the cane extends out from the handle until the cane is full sized once more.

Lizzie and I are in awe, Joseph's cane has always been an object of mystery and fascination during his tenure as Master Trainer.

I look at Lizzie, "How'd you find this? Joseph never goes anywhere without this!"

"I found it in the grass when all of this went down. Joseph was nowhere in sight and I couldn't find him in time before we all took refuge here."

She sighs, "Samson, we need to get this under control. Many Demigods are going to die of David controls the camp, we have to take him down!"

"Already ahead of you, we've got a plan in motion to get supplies for us. By tomorrow morning we can confront David and bring order back to camp. Get yourself ready, tonight you're going to help me capture weapons."

Lizzie nods determined, "Yes sir!"

She runs off, and I head up the stairs.

* * *

I jiggle the handle to the attic door, but it doesn't budge. I try using my magic, but that too has no effect.

Something thumps on the other side. "Hello, who's that out there? Would you kindly release me please?"

I tug harder, but the door doesn't budge.

"Chiron, it's me Samson! I'm trying to get the door, but it won't open. Something's keeping the door shut."

He groans from behind the door, "They must've activated the barrier. If that's up then this room is locked down magically, it's done to keep the items held here safe. Samson, tell me what's going on out there!"

"It's bad Chiron, I just came back and David's starving everyone trapped in here. He's declared himself Director and has taken control of the camp like we're under Marshal Law. We're under armed and hungry, I've got a plan though. If we drop the barrier can we set you free?"

He humphs, "The spell is enchanted to wear off some odd days after the barrier is activated. Blasted, where's Mr. D when you need him? Samson, I need to ask for your assistance. Keep everyone safe and prepare for David, by tomorrow's time I might be able to free myself and aid you in controlling this... _situation."_

His voice gets low and serious, "Samson, I'm counting on you. I have faith you'll succeed."

I nod my head, "I promise I won't let you down!"

And I won't, we'll succeed and I know we will. Today starts the beginning of the Camp Civil War!


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: Time for the Camp Civil War! Last time on Demigod ball Z, Richard got high and kidnapped Chiron. David started a riot and now runs the camp under military rule, Lizzie wants her snacks and Samson is tired of everything!**

* * *

 _With Samson, Summer 1966_

As I finish wrapping a splint around the arm of a younger Hermes camper, Richard finally opens the door from the War Room and joins the rest of our forces in the foyer. His eyes are puffy and red, but no more tears spill from his eyes.

I notice he has Thomas's daggers tied to his belt. I'm happy he'll use them, Thomas would be pleased to see his weapons being used for combat once again.

He locks the door behind him and I shoo the Hermes boy away.

Richard rubs his necks nervously, "Sooo… What'd Chiron say?"

"He's trapped in the attic, some kind of automatic defense system. Chiron says he'll be able to leave tomorrow, in the meantime we need to get ready."

I look out the window at the evening sunlight, "We need to wait a few more hours until it's dark outside. We can use the cover of darkness to sneak around and get our stuff easier."

"It might be a trap. David's a meathead but he's smart, he'll have people watching the front all hours of the day. Even if we sneak past them they'll have night patrols ready in case we try something like this!"

I give him a coy smile and he raises a curious eyebrow.

"David's smart but he doesn't have any _real_ equipment. You've got three magic users on your side, I've got a plan to help us get around camp. Call Allen and the Councilors to the office, we've got to go over everything."

He nods, "Gotcha, I'm glad you're safe Samson. We're all that we've got left, let's make sure we get through everything and make it to Joseph's age!"

We smile at each other, "I say we do one better and get even older! We're Children of Athena, we don't settle for the status quo, we set the new standard. Now, let's go get everyone, it's going to be a fun night."

* * *

Night came quickly, and our raiding party met up in the back room. Allen, Richard, Mori, Gordon, Lizzie and I pool our resources as we begin to finalize the details of my plan.

"Okay, " I start, "- We're splitting off into two groups like Richard had suggested to me. Allen, Gordon and Mori will split off and gather as much food as they can from the Pavilion and grab as many enchanted cups as they can. After that they'll swing around the camp store and swipe whatever food they can from there and swing back into the Big house."

I look at Allen and Gordon, "We need food that we can eat right away, there's no cooking stations here so dry and canned goods only."

My eyes then shift over to Richard and Lizzie.

"We're going after the armory. I searched around, and I found a Bag of Holding in Chiron's office, we can use it to grab dozens of weapons and armor for everyone here. There's only one available to us, so Allen you'll have to make do with regular bags. Swords and armor for dozens of people take precedence over small cans."

Allen nods in understanding, "Makes sense. The biggest issue I have with this plan is how are we going to get out of here without being spotted. I've counted no less than a dozen scouts hiding in the perimeter around our base, we'll be caught the second we open the door and step out of the barrier."

His worries about our situation aren't unfounded, any camper would be next to helpless in our situation. But I'm not just _any_ demigod, I'm the favorite Child of Athena and for good reason.

I always have a plan for any situation.

We have two powerful magic users on our side, we can't fight off the entire camp with two three-man parties, but we can _hide_ ourselves from them.

With the combined magic of Mori and I we can use illusion magic to turn us invisible, or at the very least make us opaque enough to be nearly invisible if we stick to the shadows.

It's time for a stealth mission!

"Mori and I have been practicing many useful spells together over the years. With the both of us here we should be able to cast a spell of invisibility or something close to it. We at most have on hour until it runs out, but that should be more than enough for us grab our loot and get back here."

Mori gives me a sly grin, "We're finally busting out the high-level spells huh? It's about damn time, we've got lots written down in the book, glad we're putting them to use! Sure you don't want to try out the sex-change spell? You'd make a really pretty girl."

"Uh, um, I-I'm good. We can mess around with that spell later and _in private!"_

"Oh ho! In private huh? Samson, you kinky boy!"

"Shut up Mori! We're planning a coup here, we can be nasty later!"

She just snorts and cracks up like an idiot and Richard gives me a toothy grin. Everyone else seems confused or just uncomfortable with the weird sex Mori and I have planned.

That's why they don't have boyfriends and girlfriends.

"Anyways we're splitting off in two teams to cover ground better and if need be, we can distract the enemy if we're caught. While we're out we should be on the lookout for opportunities to sabotage David's operation. Don't do anything risky if you can't help it, but just keep it in mind."

Richard steps forward and places a map on the table. We look it over and see he's marked down routes and highlighted patrols over the map of Camp.

He points out a red line, "I'm going to take this route here. It goes around the back of Camp and only has one guy along the way. We can take him out and slip through the back and hit the dining pavilion. We swipe the glasses and open the coolers so overnight their food will spoil. After that we take our loot and follow the same path back."

I trace my finger along a dark green line and look at my party, "This is our line. It takes us through the center of camp, but if we use our invisibility and stick to the shadows we'll be fine."

I next point out blue line that crosses the green one.

"At this point here, we swing right. This takes us around the back of the armory. There's a back door that's almost certainly locked, so we'll have to pick the lock open."

Gordon reaches into his back pocket and pulls out a small device that looks like a multitool Swiss knife. I remember this and smile, it's a special tool I made for him a long time ago.

"That's something we can take care of. This device Samson made can pick any lock, with it you can open the door silently and sneak the stuff out. There's likely going to be a guard, but you can take him out quickly if you get the drop on him. It's likely going to be a Hephaestus grunt, so he should be an easy fight."

I nod at Gordon as he hands me the device. We spend the next few hours finalizing details and running over scenarios. Eventually the Grand Father clock rings in the hallway and we know it's time to enact our plan.

With it being midnight, most campers should be fast asleep. None of the campers save for the Hermes cabin are known for staying up late, so we have natural teenage sleep habits on our side.

"Ready, Samson?"

I nod at my girlfriend, "I'm ready. Everyone, stand between Mori and myself. When we cast the spell we'll have an hour at most before it wears off, so hurry out and complete your mission as effectively as you can manage."

Allen, Lizzie, Richard and Gordon stand between Mori and I as we chant a few words in ancient Greek.

" _With our words, turn these fools into shades. Make Hermes so jealous he gets aids!"_

We snap our fingers and slowly our bodies begin turning more and more translucent. After a second we're completely see through save for a vague outline around us.

"Guess we need to work on that spell. Still, this should be enough to be unseen in the dark. Mori?"

"Right here, babe."

"Okay good. Mori, take your crew and head out, I'm right behind you. After that door opens we're silent. Get the second spell up and lets head out."

An invisible hand snaps their fingers, and suddenly our forms become slightly more transparent, enough for us to see each other better than we were before.

Richard snaps at me, "What the hell are you doing?! They'll see us for sure now!"

Mori puts a hand on his shoulder and calms his nerves down, "Chill out, man, it's a localized spell. We're mostly invisible to everyone else, but to each other we're much more visible. This way we can see each other and manage the plan easier."

Richard breathes a sigh in relief, his anxiousness is getting the better of him as he was never much of a fighter personally.

I point to the door and we start sneaking towards it. The lights were off in our room, so the opening of the door would be mostly undetected.

Crouching, I open the door slowly, just enough for us to slip through while keeping it as closed as possible. One by one, we slip through the door and start wandering down our described routes.

The night was black, and the world seemed void of any colors. The trees hang high and cast dark shadows, rolling clouds block the moons light and make the shadows even darker.

It's the perfect night to do our raid.

I point my fingers down our path, and Richard and Lizzie follow close behind me as I slink off into the darkened forest paths.

* * *

A very faint snap alerts my senses. I hold my fist in the air and my companions halt behind me. I point to the sides of the trail and we slowly make our way into the bushes.

Richard puts a hand on my shoulder and gives me a look. I hold a finger to my lips and make a silent shushing gesture.

He gets the idea and crouches beside me. After a moment, orange light starts bleeding through a bend in the path. Richards grip on my shoulder tightens, so I hold up a placating hand.

Slowly the light gets brighter and more refined until it bends around the corner and reveals an armored girl with an arm slung through the string of a bow slowly walking along the path we were traveling.

She stops by our bush and we freeze, our bodies tighten and we prepare for a fight.

The girl then yawns deeply and bats her bleary eyes. We sigh in relief, this is good. With a bit of manipulation from my magic I can set her right to sleep.

Slowly I crawl from the bushes, Richard tries to grab me again but I hold him back with a raised hand. His eyes stare fearfully into mine, but my hardened gaze gives him reassurance.

The archer stretches in the path and I silently sneak behind her. I stand and snap my finger in her ear. Like a sack of rocks, she crumples indignantly to the floor.

" _Lizzie, Richard-"_ I whisper, _"-get her weapons and armor. I'm going to scout out the next path."_

I toss my bag and Richard catches. They quickly get to disarming her and stuffing it into the reality defying bag.

A bit more quickly I sneak down the path, my eyes scanning along the forest edge for any signs of an additional patrol.

The path is clear and I explore it a bit more unperturbed.

The foliage begins to thin until I can see where it breaks into the strawberry fields of the camp. I sneak to the edge and hide around the back of a large tree and scan the next area, it's completely empty save for the absolute _forest_ of wild strawberries.

It looks like with all the Demeter kids being busy growing marijuana that they've left the actual production of camp grow wild and untouched over the past few years.

The strawberry plants grow high in the air, almost seven foot at the highest, and wrap around their neighboring plants like vines.

Berries the size of your fist grow from the stalks and I'm left gawking at this display of nature. Damn, I guess Mr. D's presence is making these grow out of control. After all this the camp's going to make a fortune when we sell this harvest!

I hear something 'psst' behind, and quickly spin around and hover my hand over the condensed form of Joseph's cane.

My worries melt when I see the translucent forms of Lizzie and Richard sneaking up to me.

Lizzies eyes widen as she takes in the forest of wild berries before us.

" _Gods, is this what's happened to the berry fields? Me and my siblings are going to be busy all summer clearing these fields out! Gods though, think of all the_ _ **money**_ _we'll make when we sell these to the stores!"_

Her eyes widen when she says money and I groan and roll my eyes.

" _Money got the camp into this mess, hard work and honesty will get us out of it. We sell these and use the profits to fix the camp and pay for all the damages you fuckers did to the cabins!"_

Richard and Lizzie blush in embarrassment and hide back into each other. I raise a curious eyebrow, are these two… _a thing?_ Good for Richard then, Lizzie is a wonderful and might keep him under control.

Though looking at the fuckery that happened over the course of two weeks, I don't think they'll level each other out.

I do a 'push forward' signal with my hand and we slink off into the mutant strawberry forest.

* * *

If the forest was pitch black in shadows, then no words can describe how dark the strawberry fields are.

Blinding darkness surrounds us completely as the plants grow over our heads and into surrounding plants in a canopy of intertwined vines.

We're forced to crawl on all fours through makeshift undergrowth tunnels to appear around the back side of the stables.

Something loud rustles off in the distance, and the ground trembles as if the ground is screaming in fury, I'm instantly on alert.

What the Hades is in this field besides us? Who the hell has a reason to be here anyways? There's no strategic importance here, so something else is in here with us.

An animal maybe? No, whatever made that rustling was way too big for a rabbit or something similar.

The loud rustling is even louder now, and suddenly I realize that it's coming towards _us._

" _Guys!"_ I hiss, _"We need to get out of here quick, we're not alone!"_

Lizzie looks behind us fearfully, _"I can sense something in here, it's_ _ **big**_ _and_ _ **very**_ _angry!"_

We quickly start hustling through the strawberry maze, our tunnel thankfully parts and allows us to stand and run effectively, which we do so with _much_ gusto!

The rustling seems to come from everywhere around us as the ground trembles under the charge of some kind of horrible monster.

I unveil Joseph's can's true form and start swiping through stray plants that block our path. Lizzie screams at me, "NO! STOP HURTING THE PLANTS!"

"Oh, fuck off! It's the plants or us!"

Lizzie screams at me, but keeps her mouth shut as I continue slicing through giant plants.

I look back briefly and my eyes widen, the ground bulges behind us and gives pursuit, almost like something huge is boring under the ground. Gods, it's bigger than an elephant!

A few hundred feet ahead of us I see the fence surrounding the border and I yell back at my companions, "There! We can cross the fence and head back into safety!"

Richard yelps in response, "THANK FUCKING GOD DUDE!"

Whatever is chasing us is fast, but we're even faster. A few more moments of running and screaming we reach the fence and hop over it like teenagers running from the cops.

Richard and I make the jump no problem and land on the other side, Lizzie goes to jump but slips and runs gut first into a wooden post.

Her speed flips her over and she lands hard on her back.

"Ooof! Augh, gods that was the worst!"

"Lizze, shut the fuck up! We might not have been caught yet!"

She groans as Richard pulls her back to her feet. I point to the ground and we drop down to a crouch.

A few minutes pass and nothing happens, no campers run from the trees and nothing runs at us from the fields. Phew, we're still incognito!

Thank the gods that these teenagers sleep like they're in a coma!

I point at the stables and we start sneaking towards the building. Suddenly something wraps around my legs tight and starts dragging me back. I yelp and start vainly grabbing at things to hold me still.

My friends go to yell but put a hand over their mouths, we can't blow our cover yet!

Suddenly I'm yanked high into the air and I look down at the ground fifty feet below me. My eyes widen as the mutant strawberries start warping and parting as some blob of greenish pale flesh starts rising through the parting plants.

Fear begins to fill me as it turns and reveals the massive face of some kind of giant fat toddler. It angles its face to look at me and it's closed eyelids open to reveal strawberry red eyes filled with rage.

The mouth parts to show off razor sharp fangs that glint evilly in the faint light. It groans like some kind of giant bellows and lifts the top half of its torso from the dirt.

I look at my legs and see vines wrapped around my ankles. The vines shift and slowly start lowering me towards the grinning maw of the giant toddler.

It runs its tongue over its lips as I get closer and closer to becoming a man sized snack for a plant baby.

Scenarios run through my mind, I can't yell at my friends for help because it will give us away, and getting caught up fighting this thing will only waste the remaining time left on my invisibility spell, so how do I get out of this quickly?

A lightbulb goes off in my head and a shimmering silver bow appears in my hands. I notch and arrow and point right for the fat babies face.

I release an arrow and the toddler groans like demonized whale as it pierces its right eye.

The vines around my leg release and I start falling towards the ground. I start flailing and crying out as the ground races towards me!

Suddenly the ground explodes in action as the giant strawberry plants seem to reach out towards me. I smack into the plants with an ooof, and the super plants start rolling me away from the wailing giant baby.

They push me off themselves and I land back on the other side of the fence and by my friends.

I stand on shaky feet and look at the giant baby disappearing into the ground under its body. I look back at a slack jawed Lizzie and Richard and give them a weak smile.

"So, it seems there's a reason we harvest those strawberries. It appears without doing that, giant plant babies start growing there. By the way, thank you Lizzie for manipulating the plants to catch me."

She nods slowly, "Yeah… no problem. That, that has to be the _biggest_ Karpos I have ever seen! I didn't even know they get that big! Hera's sake, that must be twenty feet tall!"

I put a heavy hand on her shoulder and look her in the eyes, "When this is all over, you and the rest of the Demeter cabin will take of that thing, _understand?!"_

She nods fearfully.

"Good, now let's go. The armory isn't much further."

* * *

After that little… event, we sneak around the back of the stables and approach the back entrance of the armory. Light spills out from the small window, but it's high in the air so we have no chance of being spotted.

Quickly we shuffle towards the back door and Lizzie and Richard stand by my sides and keep a look out as I fumble with the device in my pockets.

I pull out Gordon's multi tool and flip it around until I find the right setting. I line it up with the door lock and press a button.

Clicking and whirring whiz from the device and the telltale click of a door unlocking rings in our ears. I grin back at my friends and the smile back.

Show time.

I open the door slowly and we pile quickly into the dimly lit room. I look around and see we're in the back-storage room. A quick peek the large bins lined up on the shelves reveals they're full of armor pieces, but no weapons.

They must keep the swords in the front part of the armory.

I point in the buckets and Richard nods and start filling the Bag of Holding with all the armor we need. After a minute, three dozen armor sets for all our fighters fit in the impossible bag.

"Alright good, now we need to go and nab two dozen swords for everybody and we can get out of here!"

As I say that, something shuffles on the other side of the wall. We quickly hobble back and hide in the limited shadows that we can find.

The door that leads further into the armory opens and a large man with huge muscles and tanned skin sleepily steps inside the storeroom.

He rubs his tired eyes and starts pacing around inside. Gods, this man is **huge**. He must be almost seven feet tall, damn his arms are bigger than my head!

I mentally curse, of course they have the Hephaestus councilor guarding their weapons.

When he turns his back, I slowly start creeping towards his back, preparing to club him over the head with my cane.

I raise the cane and bring it towards his skull, only for him to suddenly throw a hand out and catch the sharp edges of the shaft, stopping it completely.

Slowly he turns around, and his boring brown eyes glare at me.

"Samson." He grunts curtly.

How the hell can he see me, how could he even _hear_ me?

With the speed of lightning his free hand shoots out and grips me by the throat. He lifts me by my neck until I'm at his eye level. My spell flickers until it fades, leaving me entirely visible. Guess stressing the spell causes it to break quickly.

"Sneaking up on a Hephaestus camper is foolish, we hear everything much better than other demigods. Helps with forging if you can hear the sound the metal makes when you can strike it. Our eyes are too good for any illusion magics either, how else can we forge so well if our eyes aren't magic themselves?"

"Well… I guess Cabin nine has more… gifts… than I thought!" I croak out as his grip tightens around my neck.

He grunts again, "Too bad we never got along. I would've helped you out if you weren't such a prick. Maybe David will reward me if I bring him to you? He always hated your brother, you'd be the perfect blackmail to get him out of his little castle."

I smile at him, and he looks at me confused. "Why the hell are you-" He's suddenly dropped to his feet as vines burst from the concrete and start entrapping his body.

He lets go of my neck and I drop to the floor. He starts flailing and tugging the vines futility as more and more pour from the cracks.

The vines wrap around his neck, preventing him from yelling out for help. His body is lifted in the air and he starts flailing, until he loses that power as after a few moments he's completely entrapped like a mummy by the vines.

Lizzie and Richard rise from their hiding spots, the spell finally wearing off as we stare at the plant entrapped Hephaestus councilor.

Lizzie admire her handiwork and looks at me, "Sooo… we getting those weapons or what?"

You don't have to ask me twice. We shuffle through the door leading further in the armory and start picking a variety of weapons off the racks.

Tomorrow is going to be an eventful day, that's for sure. But looking at my friends, I'm convinced we'll have more than a good enough chance.

Just a quick not, do NOT piss of Lizzie.

* * *

We gather the weapons quickly and make our way to the door we entered from, all of us are giddy and full of energy as we grin stupidly at each other.

"Dude!" Richards says, "We just raided the armory! Oh man, David's going to be so pissed off after this!"

Lizzie goes next, "You bet your ass he is! He'll throw a temper tantrum, I won't be surprised if we're woken up by his screams!"

"Kid needs to get knocked down a peg." I say, "Let's get back to the Big House, we've got a big day ahead of us!"

"Oh, chill out dude! We got our stuff, and no one was caught. Besides, what's going to happen, we get ambushed or something?"

We open the door and quickly file out, straight into a dozen and a half arrows all pointing at us.

Fuck.

The leader steps past his brethren and removes his helmet, revealing a blonde pretty boy with sparkling blue eyes.

Oh gods, of course it has to be him.

"Hey Samson! How've you been buddy!"

I sigh, "…Hey Marcus. It was going pretty good."

"Aww don't say that man!" He frowns at me, "…Hey, I'm gonna be real with you here. I was doing some thinking and well… I want to join you. I've been following you since we saw the back door open on its own and i have to say, that giant plant baby thing was freaky! I'm glad you figured it out without our help!"

The archers loosen their arrows and sling their bows over their arms. I raise my eyebrow at Marcus and sense his emotions for any feeling of deceit.

There's… nothing. He's being completely honest, holy shit.

"Huh, I appreciate the assist, but what brought this on? As far as I know you're loyal to David."

Marcus looks away and scratches the back of his neck nervously.

"See, that's the thing. There's something's wrong with David, he was always violent, but this is completely different! After he smoked that weed he got from Mr. D he's been acting like a barbarian! He rarely talks now, just grunts and screams at us. I want him out of power, Samson. With you here, we have that chance."

He walks over to me and drops to one knee, "If you'll have it, I swear to fight by your side in the coming battle."

I smile at him and squat down to his eye height.

"Marcus, gather your cabin. Tomorrow we're going to fight David. Meet us back at the Big House after you've gotten everybody, you'll be safe there while you prepare."

He smiles back, "You've got it boss! With us at your back, you'll have nothing to worry about."

And I don't, with reinforcements _and_ supplies our chances of winning just spiked! What a productive raid this has been, not only have we got the weapons, but also the aid of the Apollo cabin.

David's days ruling as Camp Director are number. As our mother likes to say;

 _Athena always has a plan._

* * *

Tomorrow came quick, far too quick.

The night gave way to the beautiful morning sun, who's rays of light serve to inspire us to fight for glory and peace.

Unfortunately, only dread and anxiety filled our hearts. Even with half of the Cabin's on our side, we're totally outnumbered.

David has legions of angry undetermined kids at his side just waiting to give us claimed campers a piece of their minds. Guess we deserve this from treating them so poorly.

The stairs from the attic make sounds as something heavy clops down them. We all rise and look on hopefully as Chiron slowly walks down the stairs.

Even if watching a centaur walk down the stairs is the funniest things in our lives, we ignore that humor as our salvation stands stoically over us.

"Children," Chiron says as his hardened gaze passes over us, examining every camper for their weaknesses, "Today we take the camp back. Within the hour I want you all to be ready, I want my camp back and I want it _now._ Do this for me and I'll be sure to pardon you of your crimes while I was locked in the attic."

The preparing demigods, filled with all new determination, quickly begin armoring themselves at twice the pace and efficiency they were before.

Chiron smiles at his handiwork and then looks to me, "Samson, I would like a word with you."

I nod and follow him into the War Room.

"I thank you for the help, Samson. I see you've prepped our little army well for battle."

"It was no issue, Marcus and his siblings defected over to our side. He did share some useful information about David, though. It seems whatever weed he got from Mr. D has filled him with uncontrollable rage. If we can knock him out, his army will surrender when they realize he has no actual power."

Chiron groans and runs a hand over his face, "Darn that Mad God! He was sent here as punishment, yet he only seems to punish me! Very well, it's as it is now. Samson, prepare yourself for the coming battle, I sense we'll be tried in this looming conflict."

* * *

The hour came and went, and with exceptional efficiency, our army of fifty demigods begins to march out of the Big House.

I was surprised to see that David has no men prepared to meet us, he must want to force a fight somewhere else in the camp then.

Marcus, Gordon, Lizzie and I each lead a small regiment of demigods as we march like warriors of old behind our trainer and mentor, Chiron.

Chiron has his head held high as he carries his signature bow in hand. He almost looks like a king marching against his rival as we travel from towards the Cabins of the gods.

We march round the corner, and waiting for us at the other end of the path way is David's _very_ impressive army. Gods, there must be eighty demigods at his disposal. A few moments of walking later and our armies stand only a hundred feet apart.

David, in all his bloody glory, stands arrogantly across from Chiron who only frowns down at the Ares councilor.

He's donned in full metal armor with a spear and shield in hand, his helmet is reminiscent of the Corinthian helmets of the days of Sparta, red war plume and all.

"SO, YOU'VE ACCEPTED MY CHALLENGE." David bellows out from the head of his ranks. Chiron just gives him a stern glare in response, and I swear I see him fidget.

"David Merigold Keen, you are in such trouble young man! Lay down your arms and accept your punishment like a true Child of Ares. Surely this little game of yours has gone on for long enough?"

His dark eyes look away and a strange emotion works its way onto his face. He seems almost… confused for a moment. Suddenly his eyes turn red, as if there's fire inside them, and his demeanor becomes thunderous.

"IF YOU WANT TO TAKE MY RULE FROM ME, YOU'LL DO IT BY FORCE! **GREEKS, TO WAR!** "

He thrust his spear in the air and his men yowl and cheer, blood thirsty and ready for a fight!

"GREEKS!" Chiron yells at us and rallies our courage, "WE FIGHT AS ONE, FOR TONIGHT WE DINE WITH HADES!"

Now our army roars with determination. Both facing armies roaring and boasting with challenge trade insults for a minute or two until the lines break formation and charge at one another.

Demigod vs. Demigod, today this civil war ends!

* * *

Swords clash, metal collides with metal and young warriors scream and howl in fury and pain.

I deflect a thrust from a spear and club my assailant over the head with my cane, he drops to the ground only to be replaced by two angry Ares campers.

I block, parry and pirouette until I knock one unconscious, the other goes to gore me but is laid out by a nasty pommel strike from Thomas's dagger Richard wields.

We face back to back and fend off random attackers as the war rages fiercely around us. I turn and see Chiron donkey kick the Hephaestus camper through the door to the Ares cabin, and I grin at the irony.

Oh how mad Ares must be!

I slap a sword a way and drive the blunt end of the cane into a random demigods chest, knocking the wind from him and sending him sprawling to his feet. A quick stomp to the face and his lights are knocked out.

Green fire and blasts of sparkling air explode into the sky and my hopes are driven even higher as Mori and Daisy unleash their powerful magics upon our foes.

Something loud bellows a roar from far in the distance, the sheer volume overpowers the sound of our fight and for a moment we all freeze, until a wave of energy passes over the battle and encourages the demigods to begin fighting once again.

What was that? That was a demigod's powers for sure, but who has the ability to cause fighting on this scale? There's no Children of Eris in camp to do that, so someone else has that power.

Then it hits me, it's **David!** He's using some kind of power from Ares to continue the fight! The man must be desperate then if he's willing to ignore whatever the Hades made that sound!

The ground begins to shake like monstrous footsteps, and the trees shake and crack as some ginormous creature tumbles towards our fight.

With a loud roar, the trees part and reveal the massive form of an over forty-foot giant Karpos, splitting the trees with his pudgy hands.

His angry and puffy eyes stare down at us, one of them is cloudy like it was blinded.

Ah fuck, this is the nature spirit from last night! It must've heard our battle and came to kill whatever was making the ruckus!

With a bellowing roar it grabs the roof of the Aphrodite cabin and rips a chunk off. The campers hiding inside start _screaming_ as seeing their own roof torn off from inside must be quite traumatizing.

A chunk of torn roof in hand, the giant Karpos hurls the roof section at us. Thinking quickly, I reach out with my admittedly weak telekinetic powers and try and change the trajectory so the projectile lands safely away from the cluster of demigods.

With a grunt, my effort pays off and the roof is knocked off course and slams into Artemis's cabin.

Oh fuck, gods I hope she doesn't kill me because of that!

The battling demigods are shaken from their fury and realize a larger threat hangs over them. With a complete reversal, _all_ demigods yell with determination and go to engage the super baby.

Richard and I hang back as we watch a swarm of godlings unite under one cause and fight for the safety of their home.

He puts an arm around my shoulder to stabilize me, using my natural psychic powers was always draining and gives me severe nausea.

"Would you look at that? We're all one big family after all! Guess our little spats are especially violent huh?"

I snort at him, "That's putting it lightly. I hope the fight ends after this, I'm really tired and I just want to relax."

"I hear ya, we've still got to burn Thom-" He's cut off as David punches Richard hard across the face, hard enough to launch him off his feet and send him several feet away.

I turn to whack him with my cane, but my reaction time is poor from my dizziness and David grabs me and head butts me hard in the temple.

Splitting pain fills my skull and I collapse to the floor, my breathing turning ragged as I struggle to control my shaken brains.

He grins and walks over me, his mad eyes drilling into me as he raises his spear and prepares to drive it into my skull.

I can barely keep my eyes open as he slowly aligns his weapon. Before he can kill me, Richard dives and tackles David away, saving my life as he engages with an enraged David.

"DAVID! David stop this! This isn't you, you have to shake out of it! Whatever Mr. D gave you can't control you, fight it!"

David just roars like an animal and starts swinging his spear at blinding speeds at Richard who only just barely blocks or dodges them.

"Please, you're my friend! Just stop fighting, it's pointless now!"

He only yowls like a maniac in response. I try and fail to rise to my feet, just like when I used my natural powers to grab the giants club, overextending my strength seems to simply shut my brain down with pain.

I can only watch in horror as my under skilled brother engages a veteran warrior in fierce combat. My voice fails to call out for any help and my weak pleas are practically ignored as all other campers fight the rampaging Karpos.

With lightning speed, David whacks my brothers neck with the blunt end of his spear and knocks him off balance. My heart stops as my vision clears just enough to watch David drive his spear straight into my brothers chest.

Time slows, and all I can hear is the muffled sounds of war behind me. Richard, whom is barely clingling onto the last dredges of his life, drop his knives and cups David's cheek.

David yanks his spear free and Richard stumbles a little, a look of melancholy on his face as he lazily gazes out upon the war-torn camp.

I can feel his fading emotions, all the guilt he holds in his heart as he blames himself for the events that have transpired recently in camp.

He turns his gaze to me and smiles sadly as our familiar eyes meet, he smiles one last bloody grin, and falls to the floor. Slowly, like a receding wave, his emotions fade until all that remains is a void where a human once was, where my _brother_ once was.

David grips his head and tears his helmet free as if he fights some unknown invader in his very mind.

He stumble back and blinks his bleary eyes, "Wh-what the hell? The fuck is happening here? Is that a giant baby, WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK!"

David looks down and see Richard lying still on the ground. A look of horror crosses his face, but he quickly replaces it with an annoyed expression.

"Haha, very funny Richard! Now tell me what the fuck is going on! I blanked after we smoked that weed and now this is happening! Hey, I'm talking to you!"

He leans down and shakes Richard lightly, "…Richard?...Richard?...Oh fuck dude! Fuck me dude, RICHARD PLEASE WAKE UP! SOMEONE, ANYBODY PLEASE HELP!"

David wails out in agony as he violently shakes Richard. Fury over takes me and all I can see is red as my vision homes in on the weak form of the murder of my family!

Pure rage replaces my previous weakness, and I rise to my feet and throw myself on top of David who cries out in surprise.

I straddle his sides and pin his body to the floor as I grit my teeth ferally at my **enemy.**

"Samson, what the fuck dude?"

He calls out in fake shock, but I ignore his weak cries and start laying into his face with my torn and bloodied knuckles.

I'm not even sure how long I was smashing his face, how many times have I hit him now?

Ten times? Twenty? Thirty, fifty, who knows. All I do is continue bashing his face, **I want to feel his skull split between my fingers as I rip his stupid brain from his body.**

Arms wrap around my body and pull me off a bloody David.

"NO, LET ME GO! LET GO MOTHER FUCKER, **LET ME GO!** "

"Samson, stop this! You've had enough, you'll kill him!"

Chiron yells as he wraps his arms around my writhing body, but I continue to struggle. **I want David dead.**

Chiron continues to hold me in his iron grip until I begin to tire and settle, my emotions draining from me just as quickly as my strength does. My rage vision clears and I'm left with an empty feeling, as if my very soul had been ripped from my body.

I look at Richards corpse and burst into tears. Why, why did this have to happen _again?_ We were supposed to be safe here, so why was he killed, by another camper no less?

Sobs wrack my body as Chiron holds me tight, whispering sweet and gently words into my ear as the realization of my brother's death destroys my very being.

 _I'm the last one, all of my brothers are dead._


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: Whelp, Samson's got no more brothers now! But, it had to be done, you'll see why later. Anyways it's time for chapter 24, we'll get some heart felt scenes this chapter. And hey, another Winter Solstice party! Hope it turns out better for Samson then last time.**

* * *

 _With Samson, Summer 1966_

Cold. Emptiness.

I sigh and sit up from my cot in Cabin Six. The tarp covering the hole in the wall the Karpos punched flutters gently in the midmorning breeze, the invading wind blows quietly through the now empty Athena cabin.

Papers rustle, and limp hanging clothes scratch against each other as I move my gaze across my quarters.

Steven's personal loom stands unused in the far-most corner, a half-completed trench coat waits patiently for a weaver to return and complete it.

It'll have to wait for a very long time.

William's jewelry table gathers dust as precious gems lie still, beautiful and incomplete bands of metal lose their luster as the air slowly wears their natural preciousness as the minutes and days pass. Sketches and prototypes fade away as I dare not touch them, the fear of disturbing his last legacy weighs heavy on my heart.

Thomas's art station is neatly packed and set upon storage shelves. His beautiful colors and completed works hang about our room, his paintings leave the last remaining love he once held to stand guard over us. Sentinels immortalized in disturbing mixtures of oils and blood.

Lastly is Richards desk, simple in appearance to my brothers work stations but just as intricate and detailed none the less.

Stacks and stacks of papers and books line nearly all flat surfaces of his extravagant mahogany desk. Plans and financial machinations remain left to wear out in the continuing annuls of time; the true and final legacy of Richard immortalized as a tale of greed and strife to be told for years at camp.

With a stretching groan I stand and make my way to my dresser, as much as it pains me to stand and walk, today is a very important day.

I don my camp attire and do my best to become presentable. Grey, puffy red orbs stare back at me as I freshen up in the bathroom. My image taunts me through the old mirror that miraculously survived the thrashing… _my_ cabin took during the battle yesterday.

A gentle knock on my door distracts me from continuing my hollow thoughts. For a moment I hold myself over the sink, but another soft rapping on my door shakes focuses my attention once more.

Time to face the music.

I walk over to my door and pull it open, the blinding daylight fills the dark void that is my cabin. With a deep breath, I walk through the door, Mori gently holding my arm as she guides me to the Burning Grounds.

* * *

All of the camp stands in attendance as I approach the shrouds that cover my brother's bodies. Chiron stands to the side of the open plat of land designated for demigod burials, the Cabin councilors stand by him and keep their heads low in respect as I approach.

I spot David hiding behind Marcus and Lizzie, his eyes meet mine for a moment and I can see the shame and lingering pain of his actions consuming his very being.

We stare at each other, as much as I want to muster fury in my heart, I-I just can't bring myself around to do it. I can't hate David, no matter his actions. He was suffering from a high gone wrong; I know my brothers would not want me to hate him, and so I'll honor their memories and move on.

I will not forgive David, but I will not hate him either, I'll make this promise to my brothers. I have a feeling they would be accepting of that position.

Over a hundred demigods stand in a semicircle around the two shrouds, but all of them are quite, nigh silent.

Shroud burnings are a moment of peace, any and all halflings know this. Now is the time to be respectful, most here have lost someone close to them.

They understand the pain of loss.

Mori gives my shoulder a gentle squeeze and a sweet kiss on my cheek before moving to go and stand off to the side with the councilors.

I catch her hand before she can leave. Mori looks sadly in my eyes and gives my hand a reassuring squeeze. I smile thankfully at her and together we move as one and stand at the head of the shrouds.

My eyes roll across the crowd of demigods in attendance, only a few meet my gaze before they quickly avert their eyes.

Chiron clops forward, his human torso donned in a nice funeral suit.

"If you wish, you can give a short eulogy. They are only a tradition, silence is just as acceptable and understandable."

I give Chiron a short nod, and he bows his head and moves to stand with the councilors.

The shrouds prepared for my brothers are things of morbid beauty, waves of silver and grey decorate the fabric sheets. Each have a black embraided owl as the center piece of the fabric.

Its' eyes are closed and it stands atop a small branch, as if it rests after a weary days hunt.

As fitting as ever, I suppose.

I'm quite thankful for the help Marcus and his cabin gave with making these for me. I don't think I would've had the strength to make these by myself.

With a steady voice, I begin my eulogy.

"Richard and Thomas, they're some of the most amazing people I've ever known. While not traditional heroes, they carried the same spirit in their own ways. Why only a week ago I watched Thomas get swallowed by Kampe, only to cut himself out of her stomach."

A few campers giggle and others groan out 'ew' as they learn about how wild and amazing Thomas is… was.

"And Richard, well only a few campers have gotten the drop on Chiron before. I'm proud to have a brother brave and crazy enough to capture our Director and take over camp, even for a short period of time."

I hiccup as I barely hold back my coming tears. Mori squeezes my hand, her touch giving me comfort and the strength to finish my speech.

"My brothers are extraordinary people, and they'll be remembered as such for a long time. Their loss was a tragedy, and the world becomes just a bit dimmer at their passing. They will be missed."

My cutlass _Shear_ appears in my hand. Blue flame dances along the length of the blade, and for a moment all I do is stare at the beautiful weapon I had created.

Sensing the trepidation in camp, I touch _Shear_ to my brother's Shrouds. The fire quickly spreads as the logs underneath fuel the consuming fire.

I stand further back and stare into the dancing flames. Mori rests her head on my shoulder, and I melt into her embrace.

Chiron come to my open side and places a gentle hand on my shoulder. Together, Mentor, Friend and brother silently say our goodbyes as brilliant blue fire consumes the bodies of my brothers.

Today, and all days to come will forever be just a bit dimmer. The world lost great lives, and only a few can mourn them.

* * *

 _Winter Solstice_

 _With Samson, Winter 1966_

The days turned to months which gave way to new seasons. Half a year has passed since I took the mantle of being the last surviving Child of Athena in camp.

That title… is rather unfair.

Joseph is still in camp, but he's… indisposed, I suppose. He's no longer the man he once was, complications from the civil war six months ago and all.

Stroke and dementia certainly are a bitch.

The camp van jolts as we hit a pot hole and I smack my head against the window.

Ouch.

The Aphrodite councilor smirks playfully at me, I give her a middle finger and she gasps accusingly before snickering and giving me one back.

"Flirting with Cassandra? Samson, what would Mori think?"

I roll my eyes at Marcus, "Shut up, Bright Boy, we're friends. Mori is possessive but not _that_ possessive. I can have lady friends."

Marcus and Cassandra snort.

"Whatever you say, Samson, whatever you say."

I look back out the window at the nighttime traffic of New York. Within a few minutes we'll be back for another party in Olympus with our parents; councilors only, of course, it seems that they're the only demigods that matter to the Olympians.

Argus grunts at us and we peak through the front window. Sure enough, the Empire State Building is only a few blocks away.

Time to get this show on the road.

* * *

"WELCOME DEMIGODS! TODAY MARKS THE NIGHT OF ANOTHER WINT-"

"Oh shut up and get this stupid party of yours over with!"

Zeus glares at Hera but she gives him an even nastier look in return, he quivers a bit but gets back to his over-theatrics.

"Ahem! Anyways let's get this party started!"

And so we did. This party is a marketed improvement from last year seeing as how the Olympians got drunk much quicker than they did last year.

Poseidon tried starting a fight with my Mother, but she strangely enough backed away from the challenge. That… is interesting actually.

Everyone always says how she gives into his challenges ten out of ten times, so something has to be bothering her.

The party carries on for a few hours, and Mother still hasn't tried talking to me yet. I spent a good amount of time listening to Hades rant about things in the underworld as a way to make time move forward.

These parties are surprisingly dull for a Demigod since we're not allowed to get drunk like our parents.

Huh, that's just a little messed up actually.

Hades was mid rant about Charon when he froze, and his eyes narrowed at something behind me. The air became frigid and I quickly backed the hell out of there as Demeter and Hades stare each other down, the pressure of their auras becoming too unbearable.

Thankfully, one of the Olympians was keeping the aura of the arguing gods contained within their immediate location, I have a feeling things would explode into violence otherwise.

I scooch off and stand by the punch table, which is thankfully far away from the rest of my godly family. Looking out at the party is quite amusing, Dionysus bickers with Aphrodite about something, and Artemis yells at Apollo to put his tunic back on. The Sun god argues back, he's latched onto a pillar… stark naked.

Zeus flirts with Cassandra whom is slowly edging her way from him, Hera stands only a few feet away and is giving her a glare that would make Atlas shiver in fear. Poor girl.

Suddenly, something grabs my arm and yanks it high into the air. I look, and Ares is grinning out at everybody in the dining hall, his face is flush, and he stumbles just ever so slightly.

Great, he's drunk.

"Alright, listen up you peons!" Ares boasts, "This little worm here fought a goblin army for ME and all in MY name! Read it and weep you fuckers, I've gotten the most honor out of EVERYONE this year!"

The rest of the Olympians start shouting and booing Ares, whom only holds my hand higher and with an even more smug face.

Gods, why are these people so freaking awful?!

Artemis pushes from the crowd, almost stumbling over Marcus as she does. Fuck, I think she's drunk too.

"Oh, shut your stupid trap Ares! No one cares about who gives _you_ honor! You only get anything because you force the half-bloods to do your stinking jobs!"

"Really?" He challenges in response, "Well who cares what YOU think anyways?! We all know what you're up to in those woods, murderin' weak mortals just because you can! Besides, you're just mad because no one likes you enough to do any quests in your name."

Artemis's face becomes thunderous (guess she gets that from Zeus, huh?), and I can practically _feel_ the murderous intent rolling off of her.

"THAT'S NOT TRUE! Plenty of demigods _**love**_ me, they'll give me honor! They're just… busy. Yeah, they're busy!"

She looks expectantly at all the councilors who look away or pretend they're busy doing _literally_ anything else.

Artemis's face turns red like a tomato, "SHUT UP, PEOPLE LIKE ME!" She quickly storms out of the ballroom, Apollo stumbling drunkenly after her and yelling at her to slow down... he's still naked.

Dionysus then says the words that everyone's been wanting to say for centuries apparently.

"…Yeah…They don't."

After that whole, _debacle_ , the party then kicks back into motion, all gods sans the Sun and Moon twins return to mingling and telling some _really, really_ messed up stories from the ancient times.

Ares thankfully released my arm and went over to hit on Aphrodite. Hephaestus has an evil glint in his eye, he must have some trap planned out for the dunce of a War God.

A gentle hand places itself on my shoulder, the familiar aura relieving all the stress and anxiety I've been feeling throughout the night.

"Let us find a more private location, Samson."

I smile softly as mother guides me away from the party and off into a large cubby between the giant pillars that hold up the ceiling. I note this as being the same place mother took me to last time.

We sit down on a stone bench and look out into the night sky above Olympus. The stars twinkle, and from up here it seems like the constellations are impossibly pronounced.

There's Orion, Scorpius, Gemini, Cyprus and a whole bunch more. Truly, it's beautiful here.

"They are truly magnificent tonight, much more than usual. Solstices always have an odd effect on the stars, as if this night is a celebration of their glory."

I look at mother whom stares out at the beautiful night sky. Being so close to her, I can clearly tell she's been having a rough time, or the equivalent a goddess can face.

Her eyes seem darker, like she's had little sleep if she were a mortal. Whereas she usually holds herself as very stoic and regal, she seems significantly less so.

It's… odd. Physically she looks he exact same, but she's just exuding a _feeling_ of something being wrong. She seems… smaller now, actually.

Her presence isn't so suffocating anymore, now it feels almost like home.

 _I'm comfortable being around her now._

Mother shifts her eye and glances at me, "You're a very receptive demigod. Rarely have I met one whom can read and understand gods as you do, even fewer make them so smitten either. I'm quite impressed by the acquaintances you've made during your quests. She'll never tell you this, but my dear sister Artemis quite likes you actually. Not romantically, of course, more of a respect. I dare say she even thinks of you as family now."

I'm… not sure what I should say. I like Artemis quite a bit, I respect her as a goddess and admire her strength. I do think her Hunt could use some improvement, they're cult-like with their devotion. Personally, I think it's unhealthy. Hades, look at what happened with Kara!

Mother raises a curious eyebrow at me.

"Lost in your thoughts, again? Are you thinking… _salacious_ thought of your dear aunt?"

I sputter and blush, "Wha- no I'm not, mother! She's my aunt, that's gross! I respect her as a goddess, that's all!"

Mother's lip curls slightly and it suddenly hits me. She just told a _joke._ I think that's the first time in history she's ever told one!

She whacks the back of my head lightly, and glares at me.

"Lose those thoughts of yours, my son. I can be quite humorous when I chose to be, now ignore those awful rumors and only listen to what _I_ tell you, understood?!"

"Y-yes mother, I understand perfectly!"

"Excellent, now tell me, what's next in the life of Samson Akira? I'm very interested in seeing where you'll go next with completing our plan we had created."

She has an odd glint in her eyes as she stares down at me, and I instantly recognize it from long ago. Mother knows what I have planned, but she wants me to actually tell her what I'm going to do.

It's a handy trick on self-improvement, actually talk out your plans with someone and you'll either reinforce the plan or expose weaknesses.

"The next place I'll need to travel to is the Sea of Monsters, particularly the island that holds the Golden Fleece. I need only a few hairs as sacrifice to create the final piece of the set. Amphitrite owes me a favor, so all I need to do is cash that in and secure transport to and from the sea. I'll likely begin this quest in the summer of next year, I still need more time to… process old events."

I look away from mother as I recall what had happened only a half a year ago. The deaths of my brothers, the failures of my strengths still weigh down heavy on my shoulders.

That cold and empty feeling in my heart still eats its way into my soul. Time heals all wounds, but not much time has passed.

I still blame myself.

Mother puts a hand on my shoulder and uses her other hand to turn my head so I'm facing her again. She gently wipes away a tear that falls from eye and stares me deep in the eyes.

"I still sense the doubt and self-pity within, Samson. The hardest lesson any mortal can learn is that death comes for them, and often in unfair ways. All we can do is continue forward and become better than we once were. When last we spoke, I tried passing this lesson onto you and I clearly failed. I was much too harsh and unforgiving, you had only just recently lost two brothers."

She drops her hands to her sides and looks at back at the stars.

"I've been alive for a long, long time. Every one of my children have continued on for the next life, leaving me alone once more. Being a god is much more difficult than one can expect. I know I can be distant, but that is something you should expect from a goddess such as I. Sooner or later, you'll pass away while I yet remain. Woe to the parent whom has to bury their children, remember that, my son."

We sit in silence and look at the stars together. My mind is active with thoughts as I pool over my mother's words.

I suppose it was unfair of me to treat mother as I had. She's immortal while I am not, in a blink of an eye her children grow old and die while she remains.

Gods, how many children have come and gone over the years since her birth? It must be thousands, thousands that have all died and passed on without her.

But… does that have to be my fate? Mori and I were planning on splitting the Apple of Immortality I had stolen; will she then be happy if she'll actually have a child that could stick around just as long as she will?

I'm starting to feel… happy now. Maybe she'll be able to treat me like a proper son if I obtain immortality after everything.

 _I can have a parent again._

She wraps an arm around me and pulls me closer, and I lean my head against her. Mother has never been known to be affectionate, but I'm thankful she'll make an exception for me.

Mother can't really express it much, but these are the moments where I feel truly _loved._

Being intimate like this helps close the hole in my heart, that the knowledge that i'll always have someone who can love me as family gives me reassurance and strength. Now, I don't feel so _alone_ anymore.

Sometime passes, but we remain silent as the painted night sky twinkles beautifully above our heads. Mother, sensing my weary consciousness then whispers down at me.

"The passing of your brothers is a heaven burden, one placed upon you unfairly. I can only help so much, but I still can regardless. I'm going to send you somewhere, somewhere familiar. I trust your friend shall help your weary heart, and you his. Goodnight, Samson, and know that I'll always watch over you."

I close my eyes and let mothers power wash over me, trusting that she'll guide me along my path and to the next place I need to be.

* * *

Max jumped up and _screamed_ when I appeared in front of him out of a blinding display of light. Poor kid, though I figured he'd be used to teleporting things since him and Eris have been going steady for a good while now.

I help him to his feet, and he holds his hand across his chest like he's pretending to be a startled old person.

"Sammie! Oh boy you got me good this time, bit flashier of an entrance than usual for ya'. What ever happened to them mirrors you used to get around? Those were nice and quiet, much more than popping out of a blast of light like you're the frickin messiah sent down by the lord!"

I chuckle at the irony, "It wasn't 'The Lord' that sent me, more that 'The Lady' sent me. My mother sent me here to… get better I suppose."

Max rubs the back of his neck nervously; did he get new clothes? Damn, I can tell by the quality of them they were hand made by someone.

"…Hey, so I heard about what happened. I'm really sorry about everything, if-if ya' need anything, I'm here for ya'."

I smile softly at Max and pull him in for a hug, he clenches up a little but quickly reciprocates.

"Thanks man, I'll hold you to your words!" We part and I look around at wherever mom dropped me off. A quick scan and I know we're in Max's mansion, the overwhelming feeling I use to have in this place has diminished to non-existence.

It's almost like Kolbe never lived here at all.

Max guides me over to the kitchen and pulls out two glasses. He walks over to a large and ornate cabinet and pulls out a large container of expensive looking whiskey.

"Hey Max? Are you sure you want to raid your dad's liquor cabinet? I get you're going through the 'teenage rebellion faze', but your dad kinda scares me. If we get caught I'm pretty certain he'll throw me off the roof."

Max just snorts and pours the whiskey in the glasses. He hands me a cup and we do a little cheers and take a swig of our drinks, the alcohol burning my throat as it goes down.

Damn dude, that's some real high-quality stuff.

Max looks out through the window, he almost seems morose, yet disturbingly happy all at the same time.

"I wouldn't worry bout' what _Kolbe_ is going to do anymore. The bastard got shot down last summer, they couldn't recover the body so we held a quick funeral not long after."

He gulps down some more whiskey and I look away ashamed. I've been so busy with myself and my own problems I completely ignored my friend! I guess I can see now why mother sent me here, to make sure I'm still honoring the people who've helped me.

"I am… sorry for your loss, Max. Like you said just a minute ago, if you need anything, 'I'm here for ya'."

I poorly imitate his accent, and he laughs and elbows me lightly in the ribs.

"You're a stand-up guy you know that? Don't worry your little head, I've moved on from my pa' way long ago. Morbid to say, but I'm finally free from the bastard. I can actually do what I want without a drill sergeant lording over me."

We talk for a little while after, i can tell Max doesn't really want to talk about his dad, and i respect his wishes. If he needs to talk about it, then i'm here for him.

Max suddenly squeaks and I look at him funny.

"Did you just... squeak, Max?"

Eris appears around his side and grins at me, "He sure did, it's almost like a button. Grab his butt and the little mouse in his throat makes a noise!"

I look down, and sure enough Eris has her hand latched onto Max's butt.

Well then, I see they're getting along fine.

Max coughs into his fist, "Uh-um, can you let go? My friend is _right here?_ "

"No." She deadpans, "Besides, he's not bothered by this. I've talked with his mom, him and his girlfriend have done WAY weirder stuff."

"Wait… how does my mom know? WHY does she know?"

"All godly parents watch their kids, it's how we know if you're being fair and honest lovers or not. Back in ancient times young people would mate in a public ceremony, now you're all _'we want privacy, don't look at us'._ Whatever happened to the good old days?"

"People probably figured out it was fucking weird to watch your kids have sex. Seriously, that's a hug breach of privacy!"

Eris just waves me off dramatically, "Yeah, yeah, whatever you say. Hey Max, can you run to the store and get some eggs? I'm making breakfast tomorrow."

"No problem babe!" He gives her a smooch on the cheek and runs off to the store. I raise an eyebrow at Eris, she can summon eggs no problem, so why does she want Max gone for a minute?

She points down at the kitchen table, "Sit, we need to have a chat."

I quickly sit my ass down; her tone was demanding and _just_ a bit scary. Eris sits across from me and intertwines her fingers as her hardened red orbs stare me down.

"Normally, I wouldn't be having this conversation with you, it's a right I save for my children alone. Seeing how Max finds you important, then I find it fit to do so as well."

She snaps her fingers and a bottle of opened beer appears in her hand. She takes a swig and goes back to our conversation.

"You walk a slippery slope Owl Head, one misplaced foot and you'll tumble down to your death or something worse. I've seen what Children of Athena get up to when they're left to their devices, the Civil War is a good example."

"A Child of Athena cause the civil war?"

She gives a halfhearted chuckle, "It's a bit more complicated than that, but they certainly pushed it beyond just mortals fighting about petty crap. What I'm saying, is that you need to watch yourself. The smartest people often have the most deranged minds, the path you're taking will almost certainly lead to your downfall."

I go to say something, but a quick narrowing of her eyes shuts me up.

"I may owe you a solid, but I won't be your salvation. If you can keep sight of who you _truly_ are, then you might live to a ripe old age. Keep my words in mind, I'm only telling you once because of your friendship with Max."

Eris leans back in her chair and looks out the window, sipping her beer as her eyes twinkle from the starlight.

I rest my head in my hands and pool over her words. 'Am I really losing myself?' Gods, I really am walking a tight rope. Mother and I going behind Zeus's back on these quests to make my special items, if we get caught then he'll either smite me with electricity or throw me into Tartarus.

Hopefully I get the electricity, at least that way I can die!

Is all of this really what I want, though? I've lost all of my brothers on these quests; will I be the next one? Is Cabin six going to be empty of demigods by the end of all of this?

…No.

My brothers gave up their lives for me, I won't let their sacrifice be wasted! As much as it pains me, I _will_ complete my quests and return to mother. I've done these quests for them, and I do it for my Mother.

I'll make sure that by the end, mother will remember me and my brothers for millennia to come!


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: Oh man, it's time for a fun chapter! As we've found out before, Samson is going to the Sea of Monsters. But to travel on the water you need a boat. Now we know a certain Queen of the Sea owes him one, so we'll see what kind of help he'll be getting from her. Here's a hint, his is much better than Clarisse's'!**

* * *

 _With Samson, Winter 1967_

"Dude, I'm telling you, it's not a bad van!"

"IT'S A FUCKING HIPPIE VAN!"

"It's a classic!"

"Both of you, shut up!"

Mori yells out at Max and I as we argue over the VW Bus Mori had bought for me on my birthday last year. It's a classic 1966 model, shiny red finish with white trimmed wheels. To most people, it's just an ordinary hippie van, but Mori isn't an ordinary person.

Being the amazing sorceress that she is, she specially enchanted the inside of my van. Through the curtain that separates the back end of the van from the driver's seat, you'll find out that the back half is bigger on the inside then the outside.

 _Much bigger._

It's just like Rhea's tent back in Maine, the inside is closer to being a small apartment then anything else. I tell you what, camping and questing will be much more comfortable now that I have a mobile home wedged inside of a van.

Mori inhales and looks at Max, "Listen man, I know you want to show off your sportscar, but that thing only has two seats. We're _all_ going to the docks, not just you boys!"

"Then we can get a taxi! Anything but being in that red monstrosity!"

"Hey!" I croak out, but Mori gives me 'the look' and I quickly shut the hell up.

"Just get in the fucking van, we've got some snacks inside so just eat your feelings away or something like a pregnant teen."

He huffs in annoyance but clambers inside the van and disappears through the curtain, his voice echoes cartoonishly like he's yelling at us from a hundred feet away.

"HOLY SHIT!"

Mori grins as we sit down in the seats up front, "Told you he'd come around to it."

I smile back at her and turn the ignition on and start my sweet ride.

"Ready to go get a boat?"

* * *

The Port of Boston is truly an amazing maritime sight to behold, I have a feeling Poseidon would be proud of the operations going through here. Cargo vessels unload wares that have traveled here from far away, cruise ships dock and unload tourists, and fancy yachts and old wooden sailing corvettes line the many wharves and wait for the chance to sail across open water once again.

It's here that I'll be meeting with the Queen of the Seas to collect upon the favor she owes me.

Not long ago I had sent a letter through the Hermes Express to Amphitrite and told her about my plan to travel into the Sea of Monsters, and that I would ask for some means of transportation that can get me into and then back out of those cursed waters.

An hour later I received a letter back telling me to come to the wharf at the Port of Boston, that I'll meet her there and she'll have, and I quote, "The most perfect and stylish means of travel on the open ocean".

Well then, I'm pretty freaking excited!

I pull us into a parking space along the wharf that we were told to travel to, and Mori, Max and I get out and walk towards the pier.

An aura passes over us and tickles at our minds. The mist is hard at work here, we look around at the people and see that they purposefully walk away from this pier. Amphitrite must be keeping them away then.

At the end of the dock a woman leans over the railing and looks out at the sea. Her hair is a dark black, and her skin is a deep Mediterranean tan. Even though her appearance and clothes seem simple, her presence alone lets us know exactly who she is.

The woman turns around as we approach, and her deep brown eyes pass over us, examining us in the way only a goddess can.

Despite being a queen, her gentle and warm smile seems to melt my heart and give me a sense of calmness. She almost feels… motherly in a way. Don't tell Athena I said that!

"Ah, good hero, it's a pleasure to meet you again. I see you've brought some friends with you, all is well then. Hello, you two, I am Queen Amphitrite, goddess of the seas alongside my husband Poseidon."

Mori does a small curtsy, and Max does a half awkward bow, guess he's not used to dealing with royalty. Though he should be, as far as I know Eris is his 'precious princess' as he likes to tell me.

"Greetings, Lady Amphitrite. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"Y-yeah, it's… nice, to meet you, your… sea-ness?"

Oh my gods Max. Amphitrite raises an eyebrow at him, and the corner of her smile twitches like she's about to laugh.

"…Right. Anyways, I received your letter and I've found the perfect gift to exchange for your favor. It's an old boat that sunk awhile ago and landed on top of my Husbands palace, being the dork that he is, he decided to make it a center piece in the castle garden as a gift to me."

She huffs angrily at her words, "The damn thing was too big though, so I could barely move around in there! But this presents an opportunity, I can get rid of it _and_ pay off my debt to you at the same time! It should be just a moment now, and they'll be- Oh! Look at that, right on time."

A loud horn rings across the water as an old steel hulled vessel begins to pull up to our wharf. The ship is quite impressive, the light grey hull and complement of command towers and equipment gives no argument about what this ship is, or at least was.

It's a military vessel.

For a boat that was sunk in the ocean, it's remarkably not rusted. That being said, what must be the guns and cannons on this boat are dilapidated and clearly non-functioning. Only the main hull seems in fine condition, sans the barnacles and seaweed strewn about it.

In the suns glare, small bumps can be seen shimmering along the sides. Now what the Hades are those for?

With one last loud and blaring horn, the boat comes to a halt and docks neatly at the wharf. Several young women lower a ramp while others tie chains around the dock to hold it all in place.

With speed and amazing professionalism, the boat is docked and they all disembark and meet us next to Amphitrite. In total there's about twenty girls whom like they're around my age, all wearing colorful and slightly disheveled chitons. Each sailor has a wicked looking cutlass at their hips, in total contrast to the goofy demeanors and… seductive smiles… all looking at me?

Oh fuck.

Mori wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me close as she glares at the women whom only glare back in challenge.

An older looking girl pushes past the girls and glares at them as she starts chastising them, "Hey! Get those looks off your faces ye' horny sirens! I'm not about to let you blow this deal for me _again_ because you can't keep yourselves under control when there's a man around!"

The crew groan and mumble in annoyance, and what must be the leader turns around and smiles apologetically at me.

"Don't mind them, they're just being ridiculous. When it comes to it they're one of the best crews you can ask for to sail the seas! I'm Ornea, leader of this band of Naiads and vice-captain to you on Queen Amphitrite's command."

Huh, a Naiad crew? Well, they're not Nereids but a water Nymph is a water Nymph. I know these girls will be invaluable, even key to making this coming quest be successful.

Ornea and I shake hands, and her grip feels like it's going to grind my bones to dust. She grins at me in a friendly way, so I can tell she's not _trying_ to break my hand.

I take in Ornea's appearance while I can, she's surprisingly tall, likely six feet with softly tanned skin. Her auburn hair is pulled into a neat knot, and her eyes are a deep blue. Looking into them almost feels like I'm looking at calm pond water.

Her arms are quite impressive and certainly show why her grip is like iron, the muscles are toned and _big_ for a Naiad. Most Nymphs are skinny and petite, but Ornea looks more like a pretty Child of Ares than a nature spirit.

Looking at the rest of my crew, I see that they match Ornea more than the general Nymph. While not as buff, each of the varied crew looks like they can and will tear someone's arms off if they wanted.

I peek back at Mori who feels her own arms and huffs, likely jealous that these girls are more jacked than she is.

"Thank you, Ornea. I have to say, your crew is _very_ impressive. You girls must've been sailing for a while."

Ornea snorts and looks out at the Naiads who all wave and blink their eyes dreamily at me, "They're a seasoned crew, we've been at this for several lifetimes and faced off against some of the most famous pirates back in the old days. They may act like a bunch of horny teens, but these girls are fierce warriors and amazing sailors. Hades, we gave ol' Edward Teach a run for his money!"

"Damn." Max blurts out, seemingly shocked by the quick tale of the Nymph. "You gals are awesome! Are all you, what was it, Nayds' this cool?!"

She gives him a toothy and flexes her arm, "It's Naiads, but no. Most of my kind are skinny little twigs and can barely lift a sword out of the water. We're a special case, hundreds of years of fighting and hard worked turned our bodies into the strong _goddesses_ you see."

Amphitrite rolls her eyes at Ornea's boasting, "Calling yourselves goddesses is pushing it a bit. Now Nereids are actual goddesses, the most regal and beautiful of all sea spirits!"

Ornea looks like she wants to argue but shuts her trap when Amphitrite glares at her. I cough lightly to get her attention back.

"What can you tell me about this ship? It looks like an old gunboat or something with that big cannon on the front deck."

"Not quite a _gunboat,_ it's under armed for that. This boat is called _The Gauntlet_ , and it's an old submarine hunter from the last war. I had the cyclops's tinker with the engines and armor, this boat runs on sorcery and can withstand the harshest of punishments. Combine that with a Naiad crew and you have an almost unsinkable ship by traditional standards."

Ornea rubs the back of her head, and Amphitrite shakes her head in embarrassment.

"The biggest problem is pretty much everything else. You'll need new guns, and since cyclops are bad with electronics the wiring and interior work needs some attention. Theoretically you could sail now, but…"

Ornea picks up where she left off, "But if you want your crew to run the boat at optimal capacity, then we need to get this thing repaired. If we run into danger, then you want all hands-on deck. We're good, but we can't have half the girls keeping the ship going and fighting at the same time."

I sigh and rest my forehead in my hands. Gods why can't anything be straight forward! Max puts his hand on my shoulder and I look back at him.

"Relax dude! Did you forget that I'm loaded?! Don't worry about repairs, I can pay for that no problem! Same with those guns too, not a problem at all to find those."

I raise an eyebrow at him, "How the Hades can you get guns on this thing without someone calling the police on us?"

"Money opens up A LOT of doors and silences many mouths. If you're still worried, then just have Mori wipe their minds afterwards… Actually, Mori, just do that anyways. That way I _don't_ have to pay them at all!"

We all look at Max a little weird. Amphitrite speaks up after a moment of silence, "Well… I'll leave this in your care now. Don't worry about having this docked here, I've taken care of it. You now own this wharf, so you may leave it here as long as you wish. I must be off now, I've spent too much time on land."

Amphitrite puts her hand on my shoulder, "Take care, hero. You're traveling to the most dangerous patch of water in this world, but have faith in Ornea. She'll lead you true if you believe in her. Goodbye and goodluck."

Then, in a swirl of bubbles and foam, she vanishes completely, leaving us all standing around and completely unsure about what to do next.

Max and I look to Mori as she seems to know what to do about our situation. After a minute, she looks to Max, "Dude, I think Eris is brushing off on you."

"Actually, I think he's brushed off on me more."

Max squeaks as Eris appears from smoke and latches a hand on his butt.

She giggles as Max stutters indignantly about something. Eris looks at _The Gauntlet_ appreciatively, almost like she knows this boat personally.

"Cool boat, I didn't think many of these survived. Flower-class, a corvette made to hunt submarines. Two-hundred and eight feet, one flak gun, one medium cannon, two heavy auto-cannons, four machine guns and four depth charge throwers."

We all look dumbfoundedly at Eris, and Ornea and her crew seem impressed by her.

"You know your stuff miss, not many women know so much about military vessels. Ornea's the name, what should we call you?"

Eris continues looking at my boat, grimacing at the state of the equipment and armament, "It's Eris, goddess of discord, yada yada. Look, what the hell did you do to this thing? How is the equipment so much more demolished than the hull?"

Ornea scratches her arm, "This just came back from the ocean floor yesterday, from what I know Amphitrite only replaced the hull and engine. Everything else needs some fixin', the boy in the button-up said he's got the money though."

Eris looks at Max and raises her eyebrow at him, he smiles sheepishly, "It's a gift for Samson! We've got it figured out though, we wipe the minds of the guys I hire so we don't have to pay for nothing!"

Eris grins at him, "My my, is Max scheming now, I thought discord was my thing?"

She walks over and pecks him on the cheek, making him go red as a tomato. The naiad crew gushes, and Mori and Ornea roll their eyes at them. A small ledger appears in Eris's hands, and she flips through the pages.

"Hmm, looks like I've got some spares in my collection." She closes the book and looks at Max, "Good news babe, I've got the replacement weapons. Fix everything else up first and I can put some new guns on this bad boy."

I look at her confused, "That easy, I thought gods want something in return for their services?"

She rolls her eyes at me, "I'm the goddess of discord, it only makes sense that I'd have an appreciation for restoring military things. Besides, Max is invested in this project and I won't have him half-ass it."

"Wait, why do you have weapons for a war boat?"

"Ares and I grab souvenirs when we're off at war. Don't let him tell you his collection is bigger, we have exactly the same amount!"

Max wraps an arm around her shoulders and gushes, "Damn, my girl is awesome!"

Eris blushes, surprisingly, and the Naiad crew starts gushing with Max, yelling about them being cute and what not. Ornea yells at them to shut up, and thankfully they do.

Mori looks at the goddess and asks her, "How come you're here, if you don't mind me asking? I thought goddesses were always busy or something?"

"Hmm? Oh, not at all. I'm on vacation for a while and I was bored, so I went to find Max here and lo and behold he's restoring a frigate. That's way more fun then dealing with all my children, they're always arguing and shooting people in the legs!"

Huh, guess if I was her I would prefer us to dealing with whatever psycho children she pops out. Gods, I can just imagine how bad a demigod from her would be. Probably some kind of cowboy or something.

I look at Ornea and the crew, "Sooo… guys got a place to stay?"

She shrugs her shoulders, "We'll just chill out here. When the restoration guys get here we can oversee them and make sure everything goes fine. Amphitrite said we belong to you now, so we'll wait as long as it takes."

Belong to me, what the fuck? Whatever, I just want to get this thing fixed so I can finish up this last quest. The sooner it's over, the sooner I can relax and hopefully honor everything I lost to get here.

"Hey, Eris, how long would restoration take on this thing?"

"I'd give it until spring, this is a big project and you'll need time to get all the parts. You can probably get this done and ready to sail in late May. What I want to know is what you're using this for? A boat like this isn't something a demigod would have unless they're going somewhere dangerous with it."

Mori and I look at each other nervously, Ornea and her crew shift uncomfortably as they know where we're sailing to, saying where our destination is makes us all wary and fearful.

"We're going to the Sea of Monsters."

* * *

It was dark outside when our trip back to Max's mansion concluded. Eris and Max dicked around in my car apartment, and it sounds like I'll have a lot of repairs to do.

Seriously, how do you break a metal pool table?

Mori and I had a small discussion about Max when we were upfront in the van.

"Hey, Samson?"

"Yes sweetie?"

She leans over a little and whispers, "Think we should tell Max about… who his dad was?"

That's a hard question to answer, especially since we know nothing about Kolbe's motivations. He was the king of the Gargarean's, so he rightfully should've had an heir to the throne. But Max fits that mold yet has lived his life as a regular mortal.

"I think we should just leave it. It's unlikely any emissaries from them would come, and he has Eris to lookout for him. I just don't understand what Kolbe's motives were then in having Max live a normal life."

"It's because Kolbe loved his son a lot, he just didn't know how to raise him right."

Mori and I flinch, I keep my eyes on the road but I can tell Eris is in the front with us.

"I saw Kolbe when he was on the battlefield over in the east, he's as hard as iron but to my surprise he held a deep hatred of the life he lived. Giving Max a normal life was his way of finding an out from Gargarean society."

We're all quiet as we soak in that information. Kolbe hated himself and how he lived, but wanted Max out because of that? That paints Kolbe in a different light, but I still can't forgive the man. Even if he sacrificed things for Max he was still an awful father.

Eris puts a hard hand on my shoulder, and a chill fills the front end of the van.

"Max doesn't need to know any of this. Are we clear about that?"

"Crystal!"

"Yes ma'am!"

Eris nods and removes her hand, instantly heat fills my body again and I breathe a sigh of relief.

"Good, now that that's settled, Max and I shall be busying doing the hoakie. Keep the van steady if you can, kay'?"

That wasn't a question, that was an order. I affirm I'll drive carefully and she pats my head before disappearing back through the curtain.

"Damn dude, they're fucking in your car."

I sigh, "…Yep."

The sun had dipped down long before I pulled into the driveway, it's at least ten forty by the time everything was settled at the wharf and Max had called and hired a local company to come out and repair _The Gauntlet_.

I know it's nerdy, but fuck man, I've got a combat frigate!

Eris and Max, both looking very disheveled, went upstairs to Max's room, leaving Mori and I to relax on the sofa for a minute.

We've been living with Max for a few weeks, it's kind of our way of going on vacation from camp. Thankfully Chiron gave us the okay to take some time off, losing… losing my siblings has been very difficult.

Never before has there only been one Child of Athena in her cabin, and as far as I know there's none coming to camp anytime soon.

For the moment, I'm a rare breed of demigod. That's not disheartening in the least bit now is it?

Mori snuggles up to my side and leans her head on my shoulder, I melt into her as best I can. We're quiet as we relax next to each other, there's no need for words; now is the time to enjoy each other's company.

Slowly, our eyes close as the long day takes its toll. Sleep overcomes us, and thankfully no nightmares attack my mind this night.

* * *

Something… feels off when I suddenly jolt awake. An eerie feeling crosses my skin and my heart races faster than it should.

It feels like danger, but there's nothing around us.

I look at the clock and see the time, exactly three in the morning. The witching hour huh? Funny.

Mori rubs her eyes and sits straighter on the couch, she too feeling the strange aura. Only, instead of being afraid like me, she rolls her eyes in annoyance.

"Oh my gods mom, we're only napping! Can we do this in the morning?!"

"I'd rather get this done while I'm in a good state of mind."

I jump as a disembodied voice carries throughout the house, as if a spirit or a wraith is haunting us like in the movies.

The shadows bend and warp as a tall woman steps through them like some kind demon from Tartarus. They twist until they suddenly pull back and become normal, leaving a beautiful woman standing where they once were.

She's a tall woman, her hair is a golden blonde and her eyes shine an emerald green. Her chiton is a deep red, like blood, and I swear I see shapes jumping around in the fabric.

The woman walks over to the opposite couch and sits down with her legs crossed, her emerald eyes staring straight into my soul.

Before Mori can say anything, the woman snaps her fingers. Suddenly a piercing pain hits my heart, it's almost like a needle has been jabbed into it!

Fuck, why did I have to take Juggernaut off?! I made it exclusively to protect against curses, gods I'm such a fool to ever take it off!

I groan as Mori places her hands over me and holds me upright, keeping me from toppling over onto the floor.

"Mother! Godsdammit he's my boyfriend!"

Hecate rolls her eyes at her daughter, "I'm quite aware. Worry not dear daughter, it's not _really_ a curse."

Mori gives Hecate a deadpan look. Hecate scratches at her weave absentmindedly.

"Okay so maybe it is. BUT, it's also a small gift. Consider it my way of asking for you to choke on my respect I have for you, Child of Athena."

The pain has thankfully subsided, but I'm still in deep waters. Last time we met, Hecate got pissed off at me because of the giants burning the town down.

That totally wasn't my fault, a giant horde should've avoided it at all costs!

Thankfully, Mori comes to my defense, "Why punish Samson, it wasn't his fault! Besides, Max was there too!"

"Have you seen what Eris can do? I'm not one to cross her lightly."

"Then why am I in trouble?" I say, "Cacus is the one who burned that town down a few years ago!"

Hecate spits her words out like a small child arguing with their parents, "I don't care! You made my job more difficult, the Mist is stretched thin and I'm at my limits! Do you know how much of a pain it is to cover up the deeds of rioting gods? I haven't slept in weeks, I'm one tick away from a complete mental break down!"

"You look like it too." I whisper under my breathe, I'm really tired and not in a good mood.

"THE FUCK DID YOU JUST SAY?!"

"Shit, um, nothing ma'am!"

Hecate exhales and smooths out her chiton, "That's nothing MOM to you mister!"

Wait… what the hell?

"Wh-what?"

Hecate leans forward and clasps her hands together, Mori sputters angrily at her mom, unable to form a sentence as she blushes furiously.

"I expect you to propose to my favorite daughter. I find it only fair in exchange for you risking her life in that dreadful sea you'll be traveling to. Propose by the end of it, and then I might be willing to forgive you."

I sputter out, "I-I'm only seventeen!"

She waves her hand at me in dismissal, "I expect results, not excuses!"

"I mean… again I'm seventeen!"

Her hair catches fire, and her eyes glow with power, "Propose or die!"

Mori stands up and gets between Hecate and myself. Immediately Hecate's horror show dissipates, and she looks up at her daughter and rolls her eyes.

"Mom! Stop it, we'll get married when we're older!" I blush and smile dreamily, gods what a beautiful day that will be.

"Oh don't give me that, Moroiaca!" Hecate chastises in a tone only a picky mother can have, "The last time I let my daughter do what she wishes with her love life, Circe ended up creating that beast Scylla! This time I'm getting involved."

A pit forms in my stomach. Fuck, we'll likely have to face her on the passage into the sea. I stand next to Mori and take her hand in mine, "Have you seen Lamia and her daughters? We're not going through that mess ever again!"

Mori's gaze empties as her eyes are filled with deep realization.

"Oh gods, I just realized I'm related to several homicidally insane sorceresses."

"At least they're your blood family, I'm being forced to marry into it!"

Hecate walks over and puts a hand on our shoulders, "They're not that bad once you get to know them. Our yearly reunions are always, what do the kids say these days? Gnarly."

Mori and I deadpan at her. Hecate smiles lightly and drops her hands, "My gift-curse for you is only temporary, so don't worry your little head. When you enter the sea, my spell shall be activated. Once you leave for good, then it will leave you. I trust you'll curse my name and sing joyfully when you see what I have given you. Now, I must be off."

She leans forward until her eyes are only inches from mine, "Keep my daughter safe, and you'll have my blessing. Goodbye, my future son-in-law."

Her shadows surround her until she disappears into the void. Mori and I crash back onto the couch, our fingers still intertwined.

"So, we're getting married soon."

"Yup." Mori says, popping her word.

"…I'm pretty okay with that. She said we have to propose, but we can get married in a few years. That way it's not so weird."

"I'd like that a lot, which is great because that means I can start planning the wedding!" Mori's eyes sparkle with joy as she rattles off all of her ideas for our wedding. I smile as I listen in on all her plans, I have high hopes for the future.

This last quest has always been the one I feared the most, but now not so much. I have a boat, I have a crew, I have a beautiful and amazing fiancé and the support of her mother.

This time, this time on this one last quest I promise to myself and everyone who's counting on me, no one will die this time.

And I'm going to make sure of it.


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: Here we are, the beginning of quest 3! I'm going to try and streamline this one some more, try and make it quick but epic. I hope you guys enjoy, I'm having the characters interact more in this quest, hopefully give them personality and make it interesting. Anyways, happy sailing!**

* * *

 _With Samson, spring 1967_

Restorations on _The Gauntlet_ have been progressing at a good rate. The men Max hired come from a reputable company, with the guidance from the Naiads and the blueprints for upgrades I had created for the ship, have turned the old boat into an advanced and dangerous warship.

Guns have stayed the same though, Eris only was willing to replace the current armament, not add to it. That's more than fair, our current loadout should keep us safe from any monsters.

Getting into the Sea is going to be a fairly easy task for us, navigating it is what frightens me. Conventional means of guidance don't apply to the sea, locations and landmarks are know to change within the waters, and a compass or map has no usage either.

To travel there, you need to be a sea spirit or the child of a sea god.

We have none of those.

Ornea and her crew are fantastic women, their skills and knowledge of anything maritime are something to truly admire.

But, they're still Naiads, and Naiads belong to the domains of fresh water. Ornea admitted to me she had never been within the Sea of Monsters, and her natural abilities of water navigation have no power on any ocean.

This then leaves me busy with something else while my friends oversee restoration; my job is to find a way to guide us within the sea.

I've tried many angles of travel, explored new and dangerous theories of several schools of magic.

Astral and lunar sorceries to create an enchanted compass that guides you to your desired destination? Won't work, those magical energies are diffused and absorbed by the magic around the sea, leaving no magic for the compass and rendering it a useless but stylish paper weight.

Harvest the eye of our mummified oracle and use the lens within it to overlay images of the future and create a map of our future _literally_ on paper? That won't work either, the Spirit of Delphi within her corpse has the necessary power, and she's unwilling to share any whiff of her being with me.

That, and defiling a corpse, especially the corpse of someone who was once my friend, is rather rude and basically blasphemy to Apollo.

Then what about regular magical guidance devices? Katoptris and my old Looking Glass Mirror function on very similar magics, only mine allows one to travel through an overlaying mirror dimension, think of it as using a shortcut through the world Laila had sent us to and arrive through a mirror closest to the destination you wish.

The unique ability of Katoptris, that I had borrowed from the armory to study its' magical properties, is that instead of traversing the mirror dimension, you instead see through it. From my studies, the mirror dimension must be a remnant created by Kronos's downfall, a shattering of the worlds image if you will.

Being that he held dominion over time, the mirror world has links that extend into the far past as well as the future.

In a way, that makes that dimension almost like an oracle, only one that has no ties and randomly sends glimpses of past and future events.

That glass replica of Kolbe Mori encountered when she was alone in the dimension? That was a representation of him from the past given form. The islands and twisted landscape make sense to me now, they're the land that was ripped up and torn during the Titanomachy, lost and twisted by the destruction of Kronos.

Katoptris can glimpse the cracks in the mirror world and reflect them in the blade, allowing one clairvoyant like vision with more accuracy as Aphrodite had used her powers to grant the blade the ability to focus the random visions into something related to the wielder's desires.

The magic is beautifully complex in design and graceful in application.

Unfortunately, I can't use the blade.

Katoptris is a special weapon, and like Excalibur can only be used by one it chooses. Try as much as I want, I can't force the dagger to obey me, and I lack the strength to recreate the enchantment on something else.

Only a god can truly harness the properties of the other dimension, and I have a feeling very few beings are aware of the other world at all.

This means I'll have to find something else more localized to our plane of existence for my needs.

I've heard rumors about the abilities of Rhea, however. That before Apollo, she and other Titaness's held power over their own oracles in some way.

Unfortunately, those oracles have either faded, vanished, or have been destroyed during the numerous godly wars over the millennia.

The oldest oracle besides Delphi to survive into modern times was the forest Rhea planted when godly life was young on the earth.

The trees from the Grove of Dodona held the ability to foresee the future among other powers. If I could harvest their sap, I could theoretically use it to create a device that could give the wielder clairvoyance or something similar.

That, however, is not an option. The grove was destroyed long ago by Emperor Theodosius as his means of destroying the worship of the Greco-Roman religions.

He was quite successful.

With the trees destroyed, then I really don't have anything available. However, I know for a fact that mother is an avid collector of knowledge, as well as storing many historical objects within her great library, like a museum.

If anyone were to have a lead, or even an actual ingredient, then it'll be her.

I close my eyes and send a prayer to mother.

" _Mother, I need your guidance."_

And the world explodes into white, heavenly light.

* * *

As we walk through the great halls of mother's temple, wonder and amazement fill my being as I stare at the impossibly tall and endless stacks of tomes and storage containers.

Displays and models decorate throughout the halls, decks and walkways intertwine and connect across each layer of the shelves.

I could spend a thousand lifetimes here and still only scratch a fraction of the knowledge that must be held within here.

Knowledge from ages before the gods, likely even before the titans line the shelves, each tome practically radiating power in some form or another tickle at my mind, offering hints to the mortal that travels past.

How in the world does mother handle the sheer knowledge that tortures my senses?

Mother places a hand on my shoulder, and instantly relief fills me as her power shields my mind from the overwhelming power of her library.

My heart slows, and I stop shaking in awe. Gods, I didn't even know I was reacting this way, I was too focused on my thoughts to be aware of my dying body.

"Careful not to lose yourself here, even as a goddess I must tread carefully, lest Dionysus's domain poison my mind and take control of my body. As beings of the mind, we walk a thin line between genius and madness. Let us gather what we need and leave, I'd rather my last son continue with our goals."

I frown slightly, 'our goals' huh? I'm honestly not sure why I've been so invested in these quests, each one has only led to torment of some sort. I suppose I do it for my mom, to make her proud enough to remember my brothers and myself.

This all can't be for waste, too much has been lost so I could make it this far.

The staircase we're only suddenly moves and starts hovering through the air, clicking in place as it connects to another level of the skyscraper sized shelf we've been traveling on.

We depart our moving stairs and walk over to a large cutout. Inside the cutout is a desk with papers and various writings pined to the walls, the language written here is something I cannot understand. I can tell right away this is one of mother's many specialized research stations.

On top of the huge desk is an average sized log, the wood seems aged, almost petrified in some way. A strange power radiates from it, and I recognize the feeling. It's the same feeling I had felt back at the lighthouse Prometheus was trapped at. The feeling of Rhea.

Mother walks over and places a hand along the log, gently tracing along the length of the bark.

"This is a log of a Dodona tree grandmother Rhea had planted in her original grove. I had saved it from the fire that fool of an emperor had created, hoping to preserve it and find a way to recreate the saplings. Unfortunately, I was too late. Time had passed, and the log has deteriorated. All I could do was petrify the wood to preserve its form. Any connection to Rhea has long since vanished."

I walk over to the log and appreciate it with mother. Thoughts start flowing in my head as I examine the legacy of Rhea.

"What about it's sap? If this tree has been mummified, then potentially reservoirs of sap have been trapped within. Even if the magic of the wood has vanished, it's lifeblood and powers might still survive in the sap."

Her eyes sparkle as she meets mine, we may have found a way to create something new from this dead tree!

"I trust your studies have found merit within this tree. Take me with you if you're too harvest the sap, I would much enjoy the opportunity to see the work my son does."

I reel back slightly, mother is coming with to watch me work? This-this is incredible! I can impress mother by showing her my abilities outside of combat, this is the opportunity to show my skills in magic and craftsmanship!

* * *

Mother teleported us back to camp, and instantly I began leading us into the woods around Camp. Originally, I worked in Cabin Nine with the others, but that quickly went south when they began fighting with me and sabotaging my work.

After that, I had gathered my tools an constructed a new workshop in the forests with the help of Nefeli and the Nymphs from Athenos manor. They guard my new workspace from intruders and I help them keep their trees healthy with my magic as a tradeoff.

Mother has switched her godly chiton for simple hiking clothes. I chuckled a little to myself when I saw her outfit, seeing the Goddess of Wisdom in casual clothes is kind of funny as you'd expect her to be _above_ simplicity.

She raised her eyebrow at me and I quickly turn around and head off into the forest, mother right behind me.

A few minutes hike later, and mother and I arrive at my hidden workplace. It's simple in design, stone foundations and enchanted wood walls to respect the nature around me. A small stack puffs out smoke, and the windows glow a friendly orange inside.

I open the door for mother and she heads inside, taking in the various forges and magical enchantment devices I have gathered and created throughout the years.

She nods approvingly at my setup, clearly impressed by the simple yet functional layout I have managed. Fancy forges and oversized equipment are for those Hephaestus nerds, I'm much more streamlined and efficient.

I can tell, mother agrees with me entirely.

She turns to me and says, "If we are ready, then let us begin."

* * *

Setting up the log carefully, I use a special tap gifted to me by the Satyr's in Camp. It pokes into the tree and allows the sap to leak out, and when you remove it the hole created is instantly sealed.

With a quick spell I enchant the tap, so it sucks out the sap like a vampire, allowing it to gather all the sap it can without destroying the log.

Thick, red viscous sap drips from the tap into the bucket I had setup to gather it all. After a tense five minutes of watching sap drip into a bucket, the log runs empty as the tree-blood is extracted in its entirety.

Mother stands behind me and looks over my shoulder as I swirl the liquid around in the bucket. There's a small shot-glass worth's of fluid in it. A scant amount of the precious fluid.

While not looking like it's worth much, this fluid is more then enough for what I need.

I take the bucket over to a large device and pour the sap into a receptacle. I activate a lever, and energy begins flowing into the sap, causing it to froth and bubble as it boils.

While that device is busy, I move over to a cauldron and snap my fingers. Light blue fire starts underneath it and begins to heat the metal. I take vials from the cabinet above it and sort through them for the necessary potions.

One-part green vial, three parts red and four parts yellow go into the cauldron. Several buckets of water go into it as well and the concoction mixes into a deep red pool radiating sorcery.

Mother examines the mixture but keeps quiet as I continue about my work. If I mess up in this stage, the explosion is likely to take out half the forest and part of the camp. Yikes!

I flip the lever off on the device energizing the sap and take the receptacle out, carefully moving it over to the cauldron. Sweat drips down my face as heat fills the workshop. Thankfully, I can handle the heat well with my enchanted silver jacket.

Slowly, I drip the boiling sap into the red mixture in the cauldron. The sap pools into seven balls on the top before sinking into the mixture.

I grab my amulet in one hand and focus my magic through the other, grey energy wisps off my hand and into the potion.

I grunt in effort as passing this kind of magic through me takes its toll, eating away at my stamina along with my pool of mana.

Slowly, over the course of an hour of concentration, the potion begins to absorb into the sap, dark red swirling into the amber yellow as they form larger and larger orbs.

Finally, with a final grunt of exertion, I collapse onto my hands and knees on the floor. I pant and shake as my body screams in exhaustion, but I still find the energy to laugh through my shaking breaths.

They are ready.

I rise to my feet as my demigod body refills my stamina and walk towards the cauldron. Mother and I peek inside and find seven large orbs each the size of a cantaloupe resting peacefully inside. Dark red swirls beautifully with the amber inside the orbs, the colors and swirls seem almost mesmerizing as I stare deeply into the core. For a brief moment, I swear I see a speck of silver light.

Mother takes an orb into her hands and studies it, "This… is an amazing creation. Within these orbs I can feel it, the spirit of an oracle lying dormant. My son, you've just created seven new oracles from but a scant amount of Rhea's power. Words will fail to fully explain how momentous such a creation is."

She turns to me, her eyes twinkling as she smiles softy.

"Truly, I am proud of you." She hands me an orb, "I believe this Orb of Dodona shall guide you within the Sea of Monsters, it will heed the orders of it's master. The rest of these, however, shall have to come with me. They must be secured lest our enemies find them, for now I shall safeguard them. Worry not, when our quests are over, Zeus shall know of these. He'll be grateful and more then willing to grant you a boon."

She leans down and kisses my forehead gently, "I must take my leave. Samson, you've made me the proudest I've ever been in centuries. After these events have come to pass, I'll be sure to reward you for all your hard work and sacrifices."

She snaps her fingers, and the six orbs rise into the air and float around her. Before she goes to teleport, she leaves me with a few final words.

"By the way, I approve of your marriage to Mori. I trust these gems will be put to good use."

Then, in a flash of silvery light, she and my orbs are gone. Curious, I go to where she was standing and pick up two things sparkling on the floor and examine them.

They're two beautiful cuts of white diamond, the weight of each leaving me breathless as they must be worth millions each.

"Holy shit mom, thanks…"

I swear I hear an almost ghost-like 'you're welcome.'

* * *

The gentle spring winds soon gave way to the searing summer heat as the months pass. Restoration on the boat was completed, Eris delivered on her promise of new weapons, and our supplies were gathered, and our courage was steeled.

Now, in the waning days of May, our quest into the Sea of Monsters shall begin. A simple quest really, find the Golden Fleece and take trimmings of the hair. With that godly energy, I can create the final piece of my equipment.

With all three pieces crafted, I may look upon the true form of a god and fully comprehend everything about divinity and return completely unscathed from the process. No incineration, and no madness.

I place my Orb of Dodona on a special pedestal I had added on the command bridge. Ornea shall steer the ship, and I shall steer Ornea. Together, both of us will guide our friends safely through the cursed waters.

A promise I made long ago will be held on this journey. On the honor of all demigods, gods and goddesses in this world, no one shall die this time.

Max pulls me into a bone crushing hug, his eyes watering as we embrace each other on the wharf.

"Stay safe man, Eris told me about that place you're going to. Whatever happens to ya' make sure you come out in one piece, kay'? I can't lose my friends, so you come back ya' hear me?!"

We part and I ruffle his hair like he's my son, "I promise mom, I promise! We've got the best crew, and two of the greatest demigods ever on this boat, that sea better be scared of what's coming to it!"

He smiles and wipes his eyes with a handkerchief, "That's right, they better be afraid! I guess I'll… just wait back here then. Maybe sacrifice a goat or something, hopefully one of them fancy gods o' yours will keep an eye out for ya'?"

We laugh with each other, "Maybe one of them will. Not sure if they'll like the scent of goat blood much. Keep yourself well, man, we'll be back in a couple of weeks."

Max extends a hand out, and I take in a firm yet loving handshake. Always the professional Max is.

He wants to say more, but he chokes on his words. Forming any kind of sentence being too hard for him as the emotions of potentially saying goodbye to a friend forever eats away at his heart.

I turn around and head up the ramp on _The Gauntlet_ and stand with Mori and a few Naiads as the boat honks loudly and begins pulling from the wharf.

Mori and I wave at Max as our vessel begins picking up speed. Slowly Max disappears into a small dot, waving his arms and cheering us on to victory.

I take Mori's hand in my own and stare deeply into her emerald orbs, a smile graces our face as we kiss like lost lovers.

"Guess this is it, huh? One last quest, one final piece of gear, a proper huzzah as we run off into our doom in a sea forsaken by any friendly gods."

I squeeze her hand gently, "One last quest, yes, but not our doom. We'll kick the ass of anything that comes our way, and we'll do it _together._ All of us, Ornea, the crew, you and I, there's no better match up then that."

We kiss again, and Mori rolls her eyes, "Ever the poet you are. Sure you're not Apollo's kid? You've got the same flowery speech, the same ass kissing words that get a girl in bed with you."

I snake an arm around her waist and pull her tight against me, "Well… is it working?"

Her hand on my butt tells me yes, yes it is.

Mori wraps her legs around my waist and I hold her up as I call out to Ornea in the command tower.

"Ornea! Mori and I will be busy for a couple hours, you've got the bridge!"

She opens the window and yells out, "Aye aye captain! Do me a favor and make it loud, might get ma' girls to stop pretending you're single!"

Mori and I look around the deck, all of the Naiads stare at us and blush as they glare at my soon to be fiancé.

Mori, in all her glorious regal beauty, shows them her middle finger. The Nymph's quickly get back to their duties, occasionally side eyeing us as I walk Mori and I to the lower deck and towards our private quarters.

Shirts fly off, and before I continue forward Mori asks one last question, "Making it loud, huh?"

I shrug, "If it gets them off our backs, then why not?"

Her smile is wicked, and we continue forth, making good due on our promise to Ornea.

Gods, we're little shits!

* * *

A few days have passed, our boat traveling gently over the waters as the tropical sea batters down at our boat. The feeling of dread and the looming clouds of darkness ahead of us leave no doubt about where we're about to enter.

Ornea grips the controls tightly as her eyes focus on the storm ahead. Great walls of rock jut out from the water, like mountains forming a fence around a massive chunk of sea.

There it is, The Sea of Monsters.

Rain drips from the sky, and lightning flashes high above us. Darkness washes across the waves as the clouds block the light of Apollo. The boat rises and falls as we barrel through waves, our boat displaying its great strength and engineering as we continue forth unimpeded.

Mori, Ornea and I stand in the bridge, overlooking the forward path as we spot a break in the mountains surrounding the water. Eyes narrow and hearts beat faster as the legendary pass draws near.

I take the microphone from its holder and speak my voice across the ship.

"All hand below deck _immediately_. The strait of Scylla and Charybdis are dead ahead, once again, all hands below deck. Brace yourselves, we're approaching the Sea of Monsters."

Activity burst on the main deck as all the Naiads finish their final tasks and disappear below deck. I smile tersely at their professionalism; these girls are truly amazing.

The waters then become eerily calm as we approach the entrance, the narrow strait seeming to be just big enough for our boat to hug one side of the rocks or the other with room to spare.

A trap of course. Choose your own doom, get picked off one by one by a lightning fast several headed monster, or try your luck with timing and run by a monster that swallows ships whole.

My hands grip my controls as I scan across the dark rocks that loom high on either side of our ship.

"Ornea, I've put my faith in you, but I'd like to know what you're planning."

She grins lightly, sweat dripping down her brow, "We're facing Charybdis, my half-sister. I've read the records and done the math, she's big, but not that big. Your boat is too big for her to swallow, the most she'll do is hold us on her teeth and spit some water at us. With twenty Naiads, any water that sinks in here will be blasted out immediately by our combined powers. It's no worry."

She gulps and massages the controls, "No worries at all."

I do my best to believe her.

We guide the ship through the strait, hugging the edge closest to Charybdis and farthest from Scylla. I peek across the channel and look up. High in the cliffs and hidden in the shadows, eyes glow deeply in the dark as the glare at us.

None make a move, and we too stay frozen as we pass by Scylla and avoid her gnashing jaws. It's still unnaturally silent, but rushing water fills our ears as the boat begins moving at an angle to the side.

Teeth like a building surround our ship, trapping us in a giant circle of death.

We scramble to hold on as the boat begins listing to the side.

"Hold on!" Ornea screams over the rushing water, "We're almost through! She can't swallow us remember? We're too big!"

As it turns out, we are not.

Suddenly, our boat slopes forward and we stare straight down into the abyss that is the maw of Charybdis.

She's not eating us sideways, she's turning us so we go down straight!

The clever beast.

"Ornea! Ornea, what's the plan to get us out of here! We'll go straight into her stomach before she'll spit us out!"

She puts her hand on a strange looking lever and stares down determined at what must be a hole straight into Tartarus.

"Just a bit longer, just a bit longer!"

"Ornea!" Mori screams, "What's the fucking plan!"

The we're falling, straight into the abyss. The maw closes, and all I see is darkness.

Darkness, and Nightmares.


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N: Oh man, this chapter is going to be a good one! We've got so many important things happening in this one! Athena's secret, the Hunter Abigail, and a surprise visit from someone we haven't seen since chapter one! Hope you guys enjoy!**

* * *

 _With Samson, summer 1977_

Dark. Deeper and dark, down the rabbit's hole.

 _Wake up._

There is no light here, only the dark. Deeper and deeper we go, through the maw.

 _Get up, my son._

This is the land of nightmares, where the dead god dreams. Where the crooked one sent his nightmares, where we all go to die.

 _Awaken_.

I shoot up with a gasping breath, sweat dripping down my face as panic eats at my heart. I claw my chest and count to ten, the simple trick I learned helping me to relax and gather my wits.

I rub my weary eyes, something in the air seems to be stinging them. After a moment I stand and take in my surroundings.

It's a store it seems, but a dilapidated and ruined one. Merchandise and glass are strewn about the place, wires hang down from the ceiling as the tiles rot a nasty brown color.

Stench wafts across the place and I use my forearm to cover my nose, gods this place stinks! It almost smells like… a dead body.

I explore the ruined store for a moment, it looks like it's been abandoned for ages. Anything wooden rots as termites and ants eat away at it, putrid stains coat the floor and random items are thrown everywhere, and occasional appear to have been thrown through something.

My weapons are still in place thankfully, but any signs or my friends are nonexistent. Calling out for them seems like a bad idea to me, an uneasy feeling fills my gut, the sense of anxiety eating away at my mind.

This place feels of danger.

As I move to pass through the stained door leading outside, I pass a mirror and stop. I turn and look in the mirror, instead of seeing myself I see someone different entirely. The person in the mirror looks like a woman in her late teens, her hair is a light brown, her skin is fair, and her eyes are a stormy grey. She wears a chiton and a silver gem encrusted tiara in her woven hair, she must be a Hunter.

The being mimics all my movements and for a second, I'm worried I've been transformed into whomever this person is. Looking at myself in the real world, I can tell I'm still the same person, and most importantly still a _boy._

Looking at the weird reflection in the mirror, I feel rather… calm. No evil pervades at my mind, and the reflection feels natural and almost _familiar._

Whomever this strange woman is seems important to me, almost like she was on old friend I haven't seen in ages.

Who… who _is_ she?

She smiles softly, like a sister does to their younger brother. I step closer to the mirror and place a hand on its surface. The image does too, and for a moment I swear I feel heat coming from it, as if she were actually there.

Suddenly the ground shakes, it rumbles like an earthquake is ravaging the land, only it's no earthquake. I quickly jump over the counter and hide behind it, the rumbling I'm feeling isn't natural, _it's something walking._

I'm far too familiar with the feeling of giants walking by now to be fooled by anything else.

The rumbles become thunderous as the ground shakes with every step _whatever_ is taking. Sweat drips down my face and my heart starts racing, what the Hades is this thing!

I refuse to peak over the counter, whatever is out there is unnatural even by monster standards.

Glass shatters within the store and I still, becoming completely silent. _Something_ rustle around the store, crashing through display still standing and ruffling things on the floor.

Suddenly it slaps roughly against the front side of the counter. My heart stops as I hold my breath, whatever it is begins inhaling like a hog against the counter, sniffing like a hound hunts prey.

After a few tense moments, the being with withdraws, the presence and oppressive aura disappearing with it. I wait a few seconds before collapsing onto the ground.

Gods, whatever that thing was is truly unnatural. I… I haven't felt such fear, such _terror_ like that in forever, maybe even never.

I rise on shaking feet, using the counter to hold myself upright.

The store inside is even more wrecked now then ever, like a bull was released in a China shop or something. Well, that or an eldritch monster was released into an enclosed space.

The thunderous footsteps become softer as whatever the thing was has walked away far enough that I can safely come outside and explore.

I open the destroyed front entrance, and step outside into the ruinous nightmare.

* * *

What… what the fuck _happened_ to this place? It looks like New York City, but if the city was abandoned for half a century and Godzilla rampaged through here!

Glass on the buildings is shattered, the exposed metal framework rusts and deteriorates in the harsh blowing winds. A few skyscrapers have even broken in half and have fallen into the streets or rests atop other buildings.

Cars and vehicles line the streets, rusting and crumbling from decades of wind and rainfall. Not a single soul is anywhere to be found either, no human or animals make any sounds is this desolation.

It's quiet, save for the blowing and harsh winds that echo through the buildings.

This place is… wrong.

Something eats away at my mind here, like the feeling you get when you visit the site of a massacre. Whatever did this has left its presence behind.

Even with the magic of my jacket, cold bites at me here. No snow falls from the deep red sky, no clouds or sun anywhere to be found.

I huddle up and race across the street, hoping from cover to cover, hiding from the biting winds and searching for another store that sells clothing.

After half an hour of running, I see my query. Across the block, a dilapidated sign shows off a winter clothing store.

I smile and start racing towards it, panting as the cold saps away my stamina and strength.

My happiness plummets as I feel the ground shaking once again. My eyes dilate, and panic fills my heart as I quickly race off towards the sidewalk and desperately start shaking door handles, trying in vain to find one that's unlocked.

None of them are.

Thinking quickly, I race over and slide underneath a van, I just barely have enough space to squeeze under it. Dear gods, I hope this is enough to keep me hidden.

The seismic steps continue forward, each one shaking the van I'm under. I hope this thing doesn't collapse on me from how violent the shaking is!

Suddenly, the shaking stops. I peek from under the van and try and look out to see what's causing the earthquakes. I can barely see anything from under the van, my head lacks the space necessary to properly look around.

I crane my head as much as possible and peek from under my cover. I see a large and flat… something. The texture looks like a horse hoof but warped and cracked in a way. Fluid leaks from the cracks, which I guess to be blood, and pus seeps from fleshy growths that hang down from somewhere higher up.

I hold a hand over my mouth and do my best not to wretch, this thing is disgusting to look at, like the inside out entrails of a living being!

The… _thing_ snorts and searing hot air blows over the van. The metal groans under the sheer heat, and I'm thankful for the properties of my jacket, I would've surely boiled to death if I didn't have it on!

The monster groans, and a strange reverb of what must be ten different sounds escapes from whatever horrible mouth it must have. The _noise_ of it is awful, the sound grates at my ears and makes me feel like my brain is going to explode!

My heart races in my chest, and unnatural terror eats away at the edges of my mind. Sweat drips down my face as I pray to any and every god I know of for help.

Suddenly, the van is ripped off the ground and thrown high into a nearby building, crashing through the glass and vanishing deep inside the building.

Slowly, I turn and look up. Looming at least eighty feet above me is the most disgusting creature I have ever seen.

The head (heads?) of the monster are an amalgamation of several different creatures. Writhing and groaning in pain, I see the heads of a Giants, a horses and even humans. They all screech and writhe around, making disgusting fleshy sounds as the move about and yowl. They look... disturbingly familiar. They look like Cacus, my brothers and that demon horse in the lamia's mansion!

The heads continue down into a twisted torso, the muscle bulge and warble as the flesh seems to constantly shift, as though things move underneath the black shiny skin.

Three long and gangly arms twist off from the body, each reaching far away and twisting off into five malnourished looking hands witch faces on the tips.

The torso continues twisting down until it reaches a massive mess of gurgling and rippling flesh. The waist looks like entrails were ripped out from various creatures and sewn back into a loose and thin skin covering.

From the mess of flesh, three legs that bend five times over extend down onto the ground and end in hooves with flesh hanging off just above the ankles.

The sickly yellow eyes of the many heads peer down at me, their maws gnash and crash as sickly red saliva seeps from their gums and sizzles as it burns into the concrete road.

Fear paralyzes me as this _demon_ leers over me. The beast is quiet save for the gurgle of it's flesh and smacking of many lips. I begin to hyperventilate as some outside force courses fear into my mind, this beast must have some power over fear itself!

 _You must fight it son!_

Huh? Just now, I thought I heard a voice, and _achingly_ familiar one at that. What did the voice say? Something-something about fighting?

Wait, that's right!

I'm a Child of Athena, I don't just sit down and take my death like this! We're fighters, and some of the best this world has ever seen!

With a roar, my bow _Luminous_ shines into existence in my hands. I'm on my feet and launching arrow after arrow into the fleshy amalgamate, aiming for eyes and where I guess other vital organs to be!

After a few minutes of pegging the monster, my roar of triumph and rage halts. The beast is completely unaffected by my attacks.

Hades, it didn't even flinch once, let alone move at all!

It's just standing there, looming over me as dozens upon dozens of arrows stick out from all over its body. It almost cartoonishly looks like a funny porcupine.

The many heads _scream_ a roar of fury at me, and that overwhelming terror fills my body once again. It raises a hand handed and goes to squash me like an insect.

My instincts flare and quickly roll away and start sprinting off down the street an towards the store I had spotted earlier.

The beast roars and begins galloping after me, each step rattling the builds and causing glass to shatter and fall off the high windows.

I duck, dive and use my magic to blast away the shards of glass that threaten to fall and crush me to death, all the while an eldritch monster straight from HP Lovecraft hobbles after me.

An idea suddenly pops into my head. I grab a green, a blue and a yellow flower from jacket and toss them with all my might at the monster behind me.

The blue flower collides and explodes into a shower of water just as the yellow hits it as well, lighting streaks out from the flower and zaps the water drenching the beast. The monster slams hard into the ground as the combination of water and electricity overloads the beast, causing it to convulse sickly as flesh boils and singes.

As that is happening, the green flower explodes, and a net of vines begin entangling the beast, wrapping around the legs and arms, giving me enough time to dive into the building and get out of sight of this horrible beast.

Taking the chance, I sprint with all my might and crash through the glass doors of the clothing store I had spotted long ago. Ignoring my aching and bleeding body, I sprint further into the store and hide inside the backroom.

Thankfully this place is relatively warm and far out of the sight of that demon outside.

I lean my back against the wall, panting furiously out of a mixture of fear and exhaustion. The cold has sipped away all my stamina and fear has eaten my bravery.

I collapse onto the floor, my trick for calmness failing as my body shakes. My heart stops when I hear a distant roar followed by thunderous galloping. The beast must've turned away, however, as the rumbling slowly begins to fade along with the howling of the creature.

The fear overtaking me doesn't fade with the monster, in fact it leads to even worse things than fear. It leads deep into my memories.

Images of my brothers and all those I failed to save race into my mind. I see Thomas and Richard, Steven and William calling out to me, _blaming me for their deaths._

I see the police officers in Maine screaming and wailing as they'll never see their families again, their bodies burning in the fire I caused to cover up their wounds. The men on the boat in Iceland whom I lead to their deaths cry my name as a thousand toothed tentacles rip their bodies to pieces.

Tears spill down my cheeks as I go even deeper into my memories.

Faces of the young men killed before me as I beg for their safe release. Innocent boys crying out for their mothers as my sisters slit their throats with smiles on their faces.

My father's lifeless eyes flash before me as a bandit stands over him, his sword dripping with the blood of my mother and father.

I-I-I… those aren't my memories.

I don't have sisters, and a bandit never killed my parents. These…these aren't my memories, but then why are they so achingly familiar?

Knowledge flashes into my mind, a second life I haven't ever lived flashes before me. A young girl whom was lost and adopted into the Hunt, a young woman who fought for the safety of innocent mortals who stumbled upon Artemis's Hunters.

This new life continues forth, I see many winters pass by, the young woman slowly becoming more and more distraught. Angry at Artemis and the corruption within the Hunt, I see a young Hesperide join the hunt and replace her as the lieutenant.

Then-then I see the end. The young woman leaving the hunt, being ambushed by Lamia and her daughters. The years of torture that end with her slitting her own throat with her nails.

A beautiful field appears before me, thousands of young demigods run around in bliss. All have smiles as the joyous light shines down upon them, Queen Persephone smiles as the fields roll with beautiful flowers and plants, the joy of her work.

The young woman is distraught, unhappy and unsatisfied. I see her diving in a river and being guided towards a divine light.

Then, then I see… me…

My tears stop, and a wave of calmness washes over my body.

 _Luminous_ appears in my hands and I run my fingers gently over it. I know why this bow feels so familiar in my hands now, why I remember that other life.

Once, before I was Samson, I was Abigail the Kind. A Hunter of Artemis who saw the flaw within the Hunt and left, only to tragically take my own life after years of torture by Lamia.

This bow has found its master once again, it had to wait for thousands of years, but it's finally back in familiar hands.

I stand back on my feet and look around the room, I see a mirror and quickly move over to it. Abigail reflects in the mirror, smiling proudly at her new incarnation.

Then, to my surprise, she speaks from the mirror, _"I'm truly happy to see who I am now. All my life I have committed sins in the name of Artemis, it is good to see that now we are a just and noble man."_

I stay quiet, mesmerized by this strange occurrence. How can I talk with my previous life, how can she talk with _me?_

Abigail smiles softly at me, _"Truly a strange genius you are. Your glasses, Oculus, as you call them, allows you to see the truth. Not just in others, but within yourself. In your desperation and torment, you've awakened my soul within you with the power of your creation. My time has since come to pass, but when the need arises, use your magic and call for me. I shall lend you my strength in your time of need."_

I wipe my eyes clear of my remaining tears, "You're wrong about one thing Abigail, you aren't a sinner. I've lived your life too, and you tried everything you could to save those wrongfully hurt by Artemis. You went to Elysium for a reason, you went there because you are a _hero._ "

She reels back shocked, clearly no one has ever said she was a hero before. Her lips turn into a smile as light tears fall down her cheeks.

" _You're much wiser than myself, I'm proud to see whom we've become. I can only guide you this one time, go to Central Park and meet with the man there. You still need to learn about yourself, and he'll set you down that path. Goodbye Samson, and remember, I'll always be with you."_

Her image in the mirror begins to fade, slowly being replaced by my image. The last thing I see is her face smiling happily as it turns into my own.

The torch has been passed down, from one hero to the next.

It's truly a blessing that I know who I was before, the skills of two lives of demigods combined into one being. No wonder Artemis has been so kind to me, she likely sensed the soul of Abigail and became nostalgic.

Hmph, didn't stop her from letting me die the first time!

My hand grips _Luminous_ tighter, any feelings of fear have long since left my body as courage and determination replaces the hole in my heart.

I've lost many people, failed just as many, but I won't let it all end here. I can't allow the sacrifices made for me go to waste, there has to be something worth it at the end of all of this.

Abigail said to go to Central Park, that the next stop in my journey lies there.

* * *

The park, like the rest of this city, lies in ruin. Trees are uprooted, the ground is torn and ripped open, and anything else that was once alive is a rotten brown.

Dilapidated trees are crooked and broken, fungus and insects eat at the remains of a once beautiful patch of trees.

I step over a horse skull and make my way towards a lone bench sitting in the field, the only one to survive the ruin wrought by that demon.

The fog covering the park becomes lighter as I continue towards the bench, each step revealing more and more of a man I thought I would never see again.

Dark hair and eyes, a nice button up shirt and jeans… A samurai helmet resting off to the side.

Tears threaten my eyes, but I keep them in check. He would never forgive me if I cried in his presence, a true Akira never cries when meeting one another.

I sit down on the bench next to the man as we look out at the still pond ahead of us.

"…Hello, father."

"My son, you've grown so much. I am proud of the man you have become, your battles weigh heavy on your shoulders, I've seen many grown men carry the same burden."

I look away in shame, "I have failed many times, father. My brothers, people under my charge… even you."

"You were a child, Samson. You should never have blamed yourself for my death, only your mother has that right."

…Yes, she does. I've known for a long time but admitting to myself that my mother killed my father is difficult. She's all the family I have left, the _only_ parent that still remains. I just… don't know how I should feel.

"Father, why did she kill you? We went seven years without any problems, so what changed?"

He huffs and looks out across the pond, idly tossing a few pebbles into the still water.

"You remember the diner, yes? When you asked what she had meant to me?" I nod my head, "She was there with us, the woman hiding in heavy clothes next to our table. When I told you her secret, she was furious with me. Only a month later, I was dead and you were taken."

"But father!" I yell, "What secret? I get that you were joking when you said you two had sex, but is that really a reason for her to kill you, to take you from me?!"

He chuckles and ruffles my wild hair, "Still believing I was just joking? Samson, you know we never held secrets from each other. What I said was true, your mother and I laid together in a night of drunken passion. You were born as all children should be, from the womb of a loving mother."

Wh-what? This, this can't be! She would never break her oath! I-I can't be the child of a broken oath! But... I can sense his emotions, he's not lying.

"Have you not wondered why tragedy has befallen you and your siblings? Have you never guessed why your cabin has not received new additions? The deaths of her children are the punishments Athena receives for breaking an oath, fate has been punishing her by killing your siblings. You are the last child of Athena now, and likely will be for many years."

I don't know what to say, fate has been against us for all these years? Why are we being punished for her mistake?! Why couldn't she take care of herself and _fix her own mistakes?!_

Anger fills my heart; no _fury_ fills my being! She killed my brothers, _she's_ the reason all my brothers are dead!

Father places a hand on my shoulder, "Do not blame your mother for all this. I broke my promise of secrecy, and I was punished for it. We all make mistakes Samson, what happened to your siblings is not fair, especially to her. How would you feel if all of your children were killed because you got drunk and made love with a stranger?"

I huff, my anger slowly vanishing. I guess… he's right. Mother should've kept her oath, but the punishment for trying something new is harshly unfair.

Is that why she's so devoted to me then? Because I'm her last child, because she carried me in natural pregnancy? I suppose that explains why I'm so wrong compared to my brothers, why I had more powers than they did.

I'm a mutant, an outlier, _a freak,_ and mother wants to keep my around because I'm the only child she's given birth to in this way, I'm just a curiosity to her.

Fuck man, what a fucked-up situation.

I run my hands through my hair, the stress of finding out what mother has done and what's been happening to me is eating away at my heart. Gods, what a migraine.

 _The pond ripples._

"You are a brave and fierce warrior, my son, but you must continue facing the truth. After this, go to your mother and learn what you must. She'll never harm you, you are far too special to her. Never stop fighting, when you stop is when you perish. Take care my son, I'll always love."

"...I love you, dad."

He smiles fondly, and his form vanishes into the air next to me, the feeling of magic permeating the area.

Hecate's curse, I suppose. What a vindictive woman, punishing me by seeing my father's spirit while also rewarding me with the knowledge I've been hiding deep down inside all along.

A gift and a curse, makes sense. My heart hurts, but the reward is worth it.

 _The pond ripples, and something roars in the distance._

I walk over to the water and stare at my reflection. Gods, I look like a mess. This whole thing is just… fucked. Athena broke her oath huh? I suppose it's fair, being drunk makes even the smartest of people do dumb things.

I just… can't believe I got father killed by asking him what mother was to him. That it's my fault he was killed by mother, that by having him tell me her secret over a decade ago would end his life.

 _The water ripples and the ground starts to shake._

I sigh as I look at my reflection. Gods, here we go with me not catching a break. What was it that Abigail said? Call upon her with my magic, and she'll come to my aid?

Worth a shot, I suppose. I'm too tired to deal with this right now.

I touch my amulet and conjure forth her spirit; the knowledge of the spell being granted to me by her when she vanished back into my being.

The world explodes into grey and silver light.

* * *

Abigail stares back at me in the reflection of the water. The spell she gave me doing more then just granting me her appearance, it truly allows me to _become_ the hero I was in a previous life.

Shape-shifting feels… more comfortable then I thought it would be. I feel okay in this form, it feels natural to me. I suppose it should, I used to be her in another life after all. My energy has returned in it's entirety, any sense of previous weakness disappearing when I changed forms.

I hold _Luminous_ in my hands, tears prickling my eyes as all my memories of the bow make me emotional.

"Hello, old friend, it's good to see you again."

The ground is now shaking violently, _the beast has come once again_.

I turn around and face the monster, it hobbles at me from across the park. The heads of the Horse Demon, Cacus the giant and a bastardization of my brother's heads howl and scream, the roar echoing across the deserted city.

Where once I was afraid, I now stand determined and ready. This beast, this representation of all that I was afraid of has no power over me any longer.

The brave Hero is back for another hunt!

I charge my foe, nimbly jumping over the terrain as my Hunter reflexes return to me. Over logs and under toppled trees, the towering form of the demon gallops towards me, each step shaking the earth.

With _Luminous_ in hand, I pull the string back, a new arrow shimmering into existence, notched and ready to fire.

My arrow launches, and thanks to my new memories I know this arrow has a special power.

A string of silver light follows the arrow attached to my bow. The arrow hits the Cacus head right in its forehead, and instantly the line on my bow begins to real in, taking me from my feet and lifting me high and fast in the air.

I dodge around a swinging arm (thank gods for my Hunter reflexes!) and swing myself around the monster. The beast loses sight of me as the line reels me high and deposits me on the creature's shoulder.

The line disappears along with my bow, and my dagger and cutlass find themselves in each of my hands.

Spinning them around, I drive them into the one of many necks of this monster. It roars in fury as blood spills from the wounds, but I give it no chance to react and start climbing the monster, blades piercing deep into the necks as I do.

On the neck of the Cacus head I stab my cutlass deep and drag it across the neck, slicing the jugular and esophagus wide open.

It gurgles and gaggles, a hand coming to the neck vainly attempting to stop the waterfall of acid blood. I was already over to the next neck before the hand could squash me, my silver dagger finding the next artery and slicing it open downwards and spilling another torrent of blood.

I grimace as the head mimicking my brothers cries out a wet shriek before dropping down, dead. I steel my heart and continue to the next and final head, the head of the horse demon.

A shadow suddenly covers me, and my eyes widen, I spin around and stab my cutlass deep into the palm of the arm trying to squish me.

I'm lifted off the neck along with the hand, I cry out as I barely hold myself on. Gods, the ground is so far below me!

Then I go higher, and higher and higher until I'm over a hundred feet in the air and looking straight into the gnashing maw of the horse head.

It's teeth smack and smash like sledgehammers, if he eats me I'll be ground into gross demigod paste! The hand begins to shake, the cutlass slowly sliding out with each shake. A few more and I'll fall right into its mouth.

An idea suddenly pops into my mind, falling is _exactly_ what I need to do!

I let go of my sword and starts falling straight for the open mouth; forty feet, thirty, twenty, ten, now! I extend my hand out, and a blast of magically air launches me forward and past the nose, sending me straight for the horse's forehead.

With a roar of fury, my ring turns back into the cutlass, flame dancing along the blade as the momentum of falling lets me drive the sword straight through the bone between the volcanic eyes.

It _shrieks_ loudly in pain, but I don't let it have a moments rest. I focus as much magic as I can muster into the sword, feeding the fire burning on the sword and sending the heat straight into the brain.

Smoke pours out of the mouth as it neighs and yowls, but I keep the heat continuing into the brain. Blood explodes from the ears as steam rushes out, and after a few more screams, the beast becomes quiet and stills.

The eyes roll back in its head, and the beast begins to fall forward. I've done it, I've _finally_ killed my fears. Now hopefully this nightmare will end.

The ground races at me when my vision explodes into blinding light. Pain aches at my chest, and my ears ring loudly. I feel someone's hands shaking me, and vaguely hear someone calling my name.

The light in my eyes fade, and I find myself looking into the emerald eyes of the most beautiful angel I've ever seen.


	28. Chapter 28

**A/N: Hey all, welcome to the next chapter! Last one was a doozy,** _ **two**_ **major reveals and a new power for Samson. And now we know Athena's dirty little secret, and how that was related to Samson and his quests! Eventually we'll see Athena's perspectives on things, but for now we need to finish Quest 3. Anyhoo, on to the next chapter!**

* * *

 _With Samson, summer 1967_

"Hey Samson, are you dead?"

"Not that I'm aware of, in fact I think I'm more alive than I've ever been."

"Okay good, I was just checking."

Then Mori's lips are crashing into my own. I freeze for a second, but eventually push back into our sloppy make-out session.

Learning about my Mother and my past life as the former Hunter Abigail has been a little… tiring so to speak. Thankfully, mashing the memories of Abigail into my brain hasn't turned me into some weird two-souls one body Jekyll and Hide thing.

It's comfortable absorbing the memories, although I wonder what this means for me? Am I Abigail, or Samson? Well, why not both?

Now that I'm kissing Mori, and I know I'm also Abigail… does this make me a lesbian? Maybe, I wonder if my power in that nightmare whatever world works in reality too?

We part lips, and Mori helps me up and sits me down on a metal crate. I look around and see the worried faces of Ornea and her crew along with Mori. We're on _The Gauntlet_ which thankfully is resting peacefully atop a mostly quiet ocean surface.

The rocks that formed the entrance to the sea are nowhere to be seen; no Scylla trying to eat my friends and no Charybdis swallowing a boat _'that's too big for her'_ to eat.

It's just us and our boat sailing peacefully on a giant patch of cursed water. Lovely.

Mori rubs her finger tips on my temples, scowling as her eyes focus on something, like she's scanning my brain.

"Hey babe, what happened when you passed out? I could sense many kinds of magic in your mind. They're both completely unrelated to each other, but they still were doing something to your brain."

I smile at her, you can always count on Mori to know when some kind of magic is afoot. I'm glad she's so amazing, only a first-rate sorceress like her would notice that something was happening to my mind when I blacked out.

"When Charybdis closed her mouth, I must've been thrown back and knocked my head. When that happened, I woke up in this nightmarish hellscape of New York. There was no one there except for this massive gangly monster that had the heads of three things that have terrified me the most over the years."

I take a relaxing breath, and Mori grabs my arm and gently squeezes it, reassuring me she's a real person.

"When I was in the nightmare, I met the ghosts of two people close to me. The first spirit was actually the soul of my previous life, a legendary Hunter called Abigail."

Mori reels back shocked, her mouth agape in amazement.

"You met your previous life? That-that's amazing! I've heard stories that people who survive being swallowed by Charybdis have terrifying nightmares, but there's absolutely _nothing_ about spiritual awakenings!"

I chuckle and intertwine her fingers with mine and open up my jacket and take Oculus out from the inside pocket, holding the golden lenses up so everyone can look at them with me.

"Charybdis actually had nothing to do with that. I found out that these let you do more then see the truth in people and illusions, they allow you to see the truth within yourself as well. From what I can guess, I unconsciously reached out and contacted my past self with Oculus. That link allowed us to merge in a way, and now I'm able to remember everything from my past life. I guess you can say that we're the same person now."

Mori rests her head in her hands and looks at me funny, "Sooooo, you're a girl now?"

"I… don't think I am. Last I checked, I had male parts on me, not female ones."

The Naiad crew shifts, smirks and grins popping up on their faces.

"Can we check for you, just in case you're not sure?"

"HEY! WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT BEING NASTY!"

Ornea yells at the girls, and they scamper off, snickering as she chases them shouting about extra duties.

"A Hunter huh? Kinda funny since you despise them a bunch."

"Heh, yeah. It's funny you say that since my past life also despises the Hunt as well. Guess my hatred extends past many lives?"

She snorts, "You are a stingy bastard, I'm not surprised that you'd hate something _that_ long!"

We laugh with each other, enjoying the sights as the midday sun sparkles beautifully across the calm ocean waters.

"Hey, you said you ran into two ghosts in your dream. Who was the other one?"

I squeeze her hand lightly, "It was my father. He… told me some important things I should've known for a long time."

She's quiet, "Are you doing okay? I know it's been a long time, but if you want to talk about it I'm always here for you."

"Don't worry, I know. I'm pretty okay actually, I've accepted my father's death years ago. Seeing him was… refreshing. He gave me wisdom about some personal things, no need to be emotional. It's okay now, we're happy with things the way they are."

She leans against my shoulder, wrapping an arm around me and pulling me close.

"Good, that's good." We rest some more, peace passing over us as we relax while we still can.

"Hey, since you have memories from your past life, did you get any cool skills or powers?"

I tilt my head and think back into my new memories, "I'm much better with a bow, but I think I got another power too. Let me see if will work here…"

Magic tingles from my amulet as I try and remember the spell Abigail gave to me in the nightmare.

My skin tingles and itches, like I've been bitten by a million mosquitoes at once. After a second the feeling passes, and I look back at Mori who's staring at me in shock.

"What?" I say. I touch my hand to my throat; my voice sounds kind of funny. I look at my hands, they're smaller then I'm used to, everything feels smaller basically. Well, not _two_ things, those are bigger.

"Dude, you're a fucking chick!"

Huh, guess that power works in the real world too. Now that I'm not fighting a hundred-foot monster, I can compare the difference between Abigail and mine's bodies.

I extend my arm out, twisting it around as I feel how the muscles differ from my male form. I feel very… loose I suppose. Just moving my arms, I can tell that my Abigail body is _way_ more agile. It feels like I could run like a cheetah and climb a tree like a squirrel.

Mori digs around in her pocket and takes her makeup mirror and shoves it in my hands. I peek in the mirror and better take in my new appearance.

My/Abigail's body looks the same as it did in the dream, grey eyes and a long, thin face. Light brown hair in a braid, no Hunter's crown this time.

Stretching across my throat is a jagged scar. I rub my thumb across the skin, the memories of slitting my throat with my nail's flashes into my mind. That horrible feeling of my blood spilling out as my body goes cold; I shiver at the bad memories, Abigail wasn't a happy person, hopefully she's content with who we are now.

I smile softly, I _know_ she's happy because I am her, and I'm very happy.

Mori grabs the sides of my head and makes me look at her, she studies my face as she whispers notes and findings to herself.

"Damn Samson, you're freaking HOT! Is this what your past life looked like?" I nod in affirmation as she keeps twisting my head to see all the angles, "Huh, I guess with your magic you've somehow gained the power to transform yourself into the other body. The magic must be piggybacking off the connection between your souls to give you the ability to shift seamlessly with your other form because, to it, there is no difference between the Abigail and Samson bodies."

I shrug my shoulders, "I guess. I'll just take your word for it, shapeshifting and soul magic stuff is your area."

She smiles wickedly, "Guess I can try Lesbian stuff with you now!"

I sigh and transform back into my male body. Mori pouts and punches my chest, calling me a meanie. She holds her glare before we start laughing and look back out into the horizon.

Huh, did I just see something out there?

* * *

Another day has passed since we escaped from Charybdis's maw. At first, I was furious with Ornea, she was supposed to guide us safely through the Sea, and upon our entrance she made a mistake that ended up with our boat being swallowed.

She quickly made it up to me when she later told me how we escaped from Charybdis. Apparently, the Cyclops's that worked on our ship added a unique feature to our hull armor.

When we activate a certain lever, the bumps I saw on the hull are transformed into long and indestructible spikes, turning our warship into a porcupine basically. Ornea used this feature to stab into Charybdis as she swallowed us, tearing up her throat and causing her to regurgitate us before we could be swallowed entirely.

I think back to what Amphitrite told me, that I should trust Ornea. I guess she's proven herself, even if she made a mistake. Ornea has proven herself capable as a thinker and a captain. How many other people can make Charybdis spit something back out? The answer? Not many, she's one of the few.

Mori, Ornea and I are back up in the command tower, navigating with the Orb and relaying the information back to Ornea has been a little troublesome, but we've been managing well enough.

Mori has been helming the sensor systems as best she can, according to her the Sea interferes with our equipment, but occasionally she can detect relevant things with our upgraded equipment.

"Hey Samson!"

"Yes sweetie?"

"I'm picking something up on the sonar thing!" I walk over to the sensor table and look at the image pinging in the screen. It looks like a big… blob.

"Huh."I call Ornea over, "Hey Ornea, is this something important?"

Ornea grumbles something about landlubbers and ignorant tree-huggers as she walks over and pushes me away and looks into the screen.

She's quiet for a moment, then suddenly sprints over to the speaker system and screams into the microphone.

"ALL HANDS TO BATTLE-STATIONS! ENEMY VESSEL APPROACHING AT THREE O'CLOCK! GUNNERS GET TO YOUR SEATS AND PREPARE TO ENGAGE ENEMY WARSHIP!"

Oh fuck dude! Mori and I run onto the deck, our matching cutlasses springing to life as we look out into the ocean to find and face whatever is attacking us.

Only… there's nothing on the water.

"Ornea!" I yell up to the command bridge, "There's nothing on the water!"

"Not in the water you idiot! It's _under_ the water!"

Before I can argue, the waves off the starboard bow explodes in a massive burst of water. Slowly, as if diving in reverse, a massive and evil looking vessel rises up from under the ocean waves.

The behemoth vessel looks like an old naval dreadnought, only it's been customized to Hades and back. Wicked looking green armor is welded to the hull, jagged and sharp edges jut out and glint in the morning light. Skulls and other haunting images of legendary monsters decorate the hull, making the gargantuan vessel look even more intimidating.

The front of the ship has been completely overhauled, what looks like a massive naval ram from an old Greek sailing ship has been attached to the front. Above it looks like a massive spike attached to a huge sheet of metal, almost like the pincer or a crab.

The enemy dreadnought is armed to the teeth, _massive_ three ponged cannons shift and turn so they face us. In a loud boom like a blast of Zeus's thunder, one of the cannons fire and hits the water just by our boat.

Shockwaves launch us off our feet, the sound causing our ears to go numb and start ringing from the sheer volume of the explosion.

Before our ship can return fire, the dreadnought suddenly picks up speed at an impossible rate. The ram _slams_ into our boat and once again launches our crew back, two even being knocked overboard.

The pincer mechanism drops down and stabs into the deck, holding onto our boat as several dozen bizarre looking fish things scamper over and quickly begin assaulting my crew with nets and bludgeons.

Like lightening, the strange hybrids run rampant on my ship, tying up the Naiads and wrapping them like spiders. The creatures have odd bodies, the heads and necks look like seasoned warrior Dolphins, and the rest looks like a regular men with impressive muscles.

Of course, they only wear shorts too, making them look like body building Dolphin men. Or a bunch of super impressive looking gay dolphins.

A net is thrown over me and I'm disoriented as I'm spun around a bunch of times. Thinking quickly, I activate my cutlass, the blade cutting through the net as I'm spun around, turning me into a spinning meat grinder.

Blood splatters as limbs fly off, the Dolphin-men spinning me shrieking as they're torn to pieces by my impressive RPM.

I cut the net off and stumble a little, still dizzy from the amount of times these hybrids spun me around.

The rest of the invading crew click and creak in anger, none attempt to recapture me however. Like a school of piranha, the pod advances on me, weapons drawn as I'm backed further away.

Sweat drips down the side of my face as I look around, my crew is entirely incapacitated as they're tied up and tossed to the side of the deck.

I do a head count of my tied-up crew, there's seventeen Naiads and Mori. That means Ornea and two Naiads are still free somewhere on the ship.

The Dolphin-hybrids back me up until I'm standing right next to the railing of my ship. I peek over the edge and into the waves below. I see the two Naiads swimming in the water. I raise a hand at them, and they nod and disappear under the water.

I turn back as the hybrids start clicking excitedly. They part as a… golden man walks past them. Oh wait, it's just golden armor. A LOT of golden armor.

The most defining feature on the otherwise featureless man is his mask. It looks like the wicked face of a gorgon with tusks jutting out from the lips. His crew chatters excitedly as he steps past them and faces me.

He looks over at the blood and dust of the two hybrids I killed and huffs in annoyance.

His voice is rich and sultry with a slight accent as he speaks, "I see you've killed my warriors. Hmph, a pity. A shame I'll have to kill you for such a transaction. You seem like a capable hero, Circe would pay quite a handsome price for you. Your Nymph's however, those are the real bounty of this operation. She'll pay me enough to staff this boat of yours, allow me to house enough profit to start a fleet."

He walks over to Mori and grabs her behind the jaw, examining her face like she's a precious jewel.

"A child of Hecate? Oh yes, you'll fetch a fine price indeed. Circe would surely double my pay for bringing her sister to her services."

Mori struggles, and I tense, ready to cut this pretty boys' head off. His crew raise their weapons at me, forcing me to stay put.

Golden boy lets Mori go and faces back towards me, his presence hovering heavy in the air.

"I apologize for my manners, you may call me Chrysaor, and I am the captain of this vessel now. Put that sword of yours away, there's no point in fighting me now. I am far beyond your level."

He's a very prideful man, he boasts and swaggers like a prince, but I feel like he might be able to back his claims up exceptionally.

The oppressive aura of this man, it almost feels like a god. I can't beat this foe alone, but perhaps with a clever enough plan…

"I can't allow that to happen Sir Chrysaor." His armor shifts, and he stands just a bit taller it seems. There's a small splash against the hull below me, almost like knocking. I tap the railing, hopefully they'll get the message. Now where the hell is Ornea?

"Then draw your blade young master, let us test your metal against mine. Show me your strength hero!"

He draws his sword from his hip, a long and golden curved blade, the same material as mine, Enchanted Gold.

"I see you wield a blade similar to my own, then let us see whose blade is superior."

Fire comes to life along my blade, I have to distract this fool while my free crew hopefully enacts some plan.

I whirl at Chrysaor like a cyclone, my blade striking at him from every and any angle, my years as Abigail helping me probe my enemy for weaknesses in their defenses.

Chrysaor casually blocks my attacks like a master, every strike is deflected and parried with no effort from his part at all.

Like lightening, he twists his sword and my cutlass is knocked from my grip, turning back into the ring on my finger. Thankfully, it seems my enemy didn't notice the properties of my ring as he returns to his boasting.

"This is your strength, whipping your sword around like a fool? What a shame that this is the standard of heroes in this age. Well, you've no weapons now. Do us a favor and end this embarrassing charade, I grow tired of waiting for this to end."

The Naiads haven't enacted whatever they're planning yet, they must need more time! _Luminous_ appears in my hand, and like a machine gun my arrows fly off at Chrysaor. In only a few seconds, several dozen of my arrows are launched; Chrysaor deflects every single one, like a blur he sends my arrows flying off in every direction.

"Huh, an archer as well? You appear far more proficient with a bow, pity you can't loose your arrows faster then I can deflect them! Is there truly none here who can challenge me?"

"HEY!"

We all turn, standing atop the command tower is Ornea, wielding a _huge_ machine gun. She grins as she turns the gun and points it directly at Chrysaor.

If he wasn't sweating before, then he surely is now. Ornea smirks as she flips the safety off on her gun.

"Do me a favor and get the _hell_ off my ship!"

Then she pulls the trigger, and Chrysaor is blasted by a hail-fire of lead. The Dolphin-Hybrids shriek and cry out, when suddenly the two Naiad's jump from over the side and begin slashing into the distraught pirates.

The ropes binding Mori are blasted open by a spell, and she's on her feet and cutting the rest of our crew free with her sword.

Ornea throws the gun aside as the magazine runs empty. She draws her sword and jumps from the tower and into the wiggling mass of dolphin people, her sword swinging into and through them like a woman gone mad.

"FUCK OFF YOU SLIPPERY ASSHOLES!"

Okay, so maybe she is a madwoman.

Activity erupts on the deck of my ship as my newly freed crew engages the pirates. Swords clash and crash as the highly skilled Naiads push the Dolphin men back, their hardened skills as a warrior proving superior to our enemies.

Chrysaor cries out, blood pools from holes in his armor as he hides his face with his hand, his mask lying broken on the floor.

"AAAAHH! YOU WRECTH, YOU'LL PAY! YOU'LL PAY!"

He lumbers at me, his sword swinging wildly as he hacks and slashes the air clumsily. Even distraught, Chrysaor is a dangerous foe.

His blade is like the wind, I'm forced to pedal back as I barely deflect his strikes with my bow. An idea pops in my head, my bow vanishes as I reach to my waist and take the condensed form of Joseph's cane in hand.

With a click of a button, the cane extends and goes limp as it turns into its whip form. I grip it tight as memories of my mentor fallen from grace fill my mind.

My gaze hardens as I look back at the flailing form of Chrysaor. I made a promise to myself, no one dies on this quest, this asshole isn't going to hurt anyone while I'm around!

My whip flurries out, the jagged metal edges grating against Chrysaor's ruined armor, each strike rending the metal and further exposing him from his armor.

"AGH! DIE YOU WORM!"

His blade lashes out me once again, the reach of my whip giving me the edge as I out range him. I spin around and bring the whip to slash across his knees. Suddenly his hand snaps out and grabs the whip, He growls behind the hand covering his face as he wraps the whip around his wrist and yanks it clear from my hands.

I summon my scimitar and get into a defensive stance. Chrysaor races forward, I barely deck under his swipe, only to be kicked in the gut and launched back into the steel wall behind me.

His sword slashes across the wall, leaving behind a huge gash as I duck under the swing once again. I roll around his side, swiping at his legs with my cutlass.

He parries the strike and follows the motion through, I barely bring my sword up in time as his hit sends me spiraling back.

I raise my sword into the air as Chrysaor smashes his down onto mine like a sledge hammer. Over and over he beats his weapon down as he roars like a man gone mad.

My arms ache as I barely hold out against him. With a final roar he smashes my sword and knocks me to my back. He places a boot on my sword arm and presses down hard, the metal in his boots cutting into my forearm.

I cry out as he twists his boot, the bones in my arm groaning and threatening to crack under the pressure.

"I. Wont. Be. Made. A fool!" He snarls out, face still hidden behind his arm. He presses down even more, my arm strains until I feel a sickening _crack_.

I grit my teeth, barely holding back my tears as he twists his foot into my arm even more. He raises his sword in the air, the point aiming right for my heart. The golden blade twinkles in the sunlight, and he brings his sword down.

He cries out as his kidney is suddenly pierced from behind, the long silver blade of Mori's cutlass dripping with the deep blood trickling off the blade and onto the deck below.

Chrysaor chokes out as she rips the blade from his body. He stumbles towards the railing, and Mori pushes him away as she reaches a hand down to me, her hair bellowing in the wind as her hardened emerald eyes stare into my own.

Like a Goddess, she stands high above me. As a savior, an angel and a Valkyrie. She's so… _beautiful._

I smile weakly and take her hand as she lifts me back to my feet. She holds up as we face Chrysaor, whom leans weakly against the railing.

He chokes out and coughs, but still covers his face. Mori and I look at each other and nod, let's take this fucker down!

We intertwine our fingers and focus magic into our hands, our power grows and grows as we combine our strength. We turn back to Chrysaor and cry out a roar of fury as we punch him in the chest together.

Like a crack of lightning, our power erupts and lashes out, the energy slamming Chrysaor in the chest and launching him far into the distance. His ravings of fury carry across the ocean until he disappears far from our sight.

The fighting behind us dies down as Chrysaor's crew watch him sail into the horizon. Like a pack of wild animals, they creak and scurry off the side of our boat and race back over to their dreadnaught.

My Naiad crew cheer out and throw insults at the retreating pirates. The claw grabbing our ship releases, and the battleship begins pulling away from us.

Oh no, not on my watch!

"Ornea!" I yell. She pops up from the crowd, clutching her eye as blood seeps from her fingertips. She grins at me and gives me a thumbs up.

Okay then. I point my thumb at the enemy ship, and she scowls and yells out to our crew.

"Alright ya' lazy sea wenches, back to your stations! We've still got an enemy boat to sink!"

The girls are back in action, with incredible grace and fluidity they return to their workspaces and start prepping the boat for action once again.

A Naiad hops into the main cannon of our vessel with a few co-gunners at her side. A round is chambered, and the weapon turns and faces towards the fleeing ship.

Ornea yells out a command, and the gun explodes into action. The deafening boom launches a round that trail over the water and strikes the back half of the enemy boat. The dreadnoughts deck erupts into wild chaos as the crew aboard run around, putting out fires and attempting to get to their own guns.

"Girls! Get those machine guns spinning, don't let them fire back!"

The Naiads listen to my order and place themselves on the various weapon mountings.

Like the war had returned, our weapons fire off in fury. Heavy auto-cannons tear hull to shreds and machineguns rip into the scurrying crew. Our heavy cannon launches high yield rounds into the enemy heavy weapons. They explode in a brilliant display as the chambered heavy rounds explode in the barrels.

"Ornea!" I yell to her as she helms the bridge, "Why don't we show that boat what our special spikes can do!"

She smiles and pushes the controls all the way forward. Our boat lurches forward as the improved engines push us through the water and towards the fleeing ship.

Our guns tear through the enemy vessel as our crew coordinates their attack, the pirates haven't even been able to send a single round in return!

Metal screams as we slam into the side of the enemy boat, hybrids and Nymphs cry out as thousands of tons of steel ram into each other.

Ornea flips a lever, and the bumps covering our hull jut out and transform into spikes that stab deep into the enemy boat.

She calls out a command to our crew, and every Naiad uses their control over water to push our boat forward with all their might.

Like a butcher carves meat, the spikes of our boat rend through the steel hull of the pirate dreadnought. Longs scars of torn metal rip along the length of the hull, water rushes in and starts weighing the boat down.

Ornea turns our boat away lest we get dragged down with the enemy vessel. We cheer and holler as the dreadnought begins to sink, fire and smoke pillowing out as it vanishes under the dark waves.

The adrenaline finally wears off as I collapse on a chair in the command tower. Mori hovers about me as she tends to the wound on my arm, fashioning a makeshift splint before she heads off towards the lower deck to find ambrosia and proper medical supplies.

I look at Ornea as she finishes wrapping gauze around her head.

"What's the report on the situation? Is everyone okay?"

She nods weakly, likely hurting quite a bit from losing an eye, "Aye, everyone survived the fight. I talked with the engine crew, and it's not looking hot. We stressed the engine when we rammed the boat, we have to get it fixed while it still functions at low speed."

"Can anyone of us fix it with parts here?"

"Not us, none of my girls know how to handle that beast of an engine below deck, we'll have to dock somewhere and get assistance."

I'm sensing a but in this situation. I give her an expectant look, and she huffs and looks out the window.

"We have to get help from the girls at Circe's island."


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N: Chapter 29 time! Last one we saw Chrysaor getting wrecked by Ornea, Mori and Samson, and we had a small little boat battle! Nothing quite as fun as watching heavy explosive weapons tearing into metal. And now we go to Circe's island, they've got to fix the boat and she's the only one around with a proper dock. Now last chapter we saw Samson has the ability to turn into a girl, so perhaps that might work to his advantage here. Lol nah!**

* * *

 _With Samson, summer 1967_

"Circe?"

"Yeppers."

"Minor Goddess of Magic. Daughter of Hecate, _that Circe?"_

"…Yeah?"

"You know what she does to men, right?"

Ornea scratches her bandages as I look at her dumbfounded. She seems completely oblivious to the peril I'm about to be in.

Suddenly, her mouth open into an O, guess she finally gets it. She looks me up and down and grimaces, lifting my hair and trying to stylize it into something more girly.

"Huh, you've got a pretty round face. Nice eyes too. We could stuff a bra and have you wear it, might be able to pass you off for a girl if they don't take your clothes off."

Mori chokes on her water behind us and starts laughing. I blush and glare at her; Gods, why do we have to go to that woman of all people for help!

"I'm not dressing in drag, I'll never be able to live it down. I'm looking at you Mori!"

She shrieks and puts her hands in the air, still laughing at the idea of me dressed up like a woman. Oh for Gods sake, I'm going to have to use that one spell aren't I?

I sigh and touch my amulet, Mori beams at me and smiles, eyes sparkling in joy at the sight she's about to behold.

My skin prickles as the spell activates. Ornea's eyes widen in surprise as I suddenly shapeshift, transforming into my other form.

"Wow… you're actually pretty hot. Man, I wish I had magic! That's such a handy skill, I could rob so many stores if I had it!"

I roll my eyes and walk past Ornea, "Yes, yes, arson and theft. Let's just get to that island soon here, I can't swim with a broken arm."

Mori wraps an arm around me and pulls me tight, smashing her face against mine.

"Come on babe, don't be such a stick in the mud! We're _all_ girls here, lets have some fun while we're at it!"

* * *

And that's how I found myself playing twenty questions with Ornea with Mori while she heals the bones in may arm.

"How old were you when you left the hunt?"

"Around one thousand and forty-nine."

"What's Artemis _really_ like?"

"Really childish and kind of a bitch. If you're not brainwashed, then she's really just an awful person."

"What's it like being a girl?"

"You're a girl, you already know."

"How fast can you run?"

"Not sure, I did outrun a deer once."

Ornea whistles appreciatively, "What's the most impressive thing you've ever killed?"

I think back to all of the monsters I've fought throughout both of my lives.

"I'd say it's this Drakon that rampaged through the lands when Olympus was young. I slew it single handedly after Artemis refused to in a fit of defiance against her father after he did awful things to a hunter. The beast was several hundred feet long and breathed fire, I fought it for several days but eventually killed it. I almost died, but I survived and took its sinew as a trophy. That sinew is actually the string of my bow, that's where the powers come from."

Mori and Ornea peer at me, eyes twinkling in delight as they eat up my story.

"What happened next? Did you fight any other cool monsters?"

I smile and continue my story as I recount more of my battles from times past. They're practically absorbed into my tales as we pass the time with each other, sharing memories of all our worthiest and most difficult foes.

You know, as us girls do.

Our stories continue until the sun starts dipping down to the horizon. Ornea sounds the horn as a large island appears far out in the distance. My Orb gives me the sight to see out and understand what this place is, the island resort of Circe.

 _The Gauntlet_ limps slowly across the waters surface, most of our crew focused on using their powers to push us along.

Slowly and steadily, we approach the island and aim for a dock on the pier. Looking out we see a couple of attendants waiting patiently for us to dock, both of them young women.

Ornea decides to be a jackass and blares our horn as we pull to a stop at the dock. The attendants jolt in surprise, but quickly return to their professional statures.

She chuckles and I roll my eyes at her theatrics. Mori starts snickering and I elbow her ribs to make her stop. She pouts, but her lips quiver as she tries to hold her laughs back.

"Ready to head out?" She says, wrapping an arm around as she guides me down the steps.

"As ready as I can ever be. Let's just hope we can get Circe's aid and get the hell off this island as soon as possible."

My crew ties our boat down and drops the ramp. They follow behind us as Mori and I walk with Ornea down the pier and towards the set of attendants at the end.

They smile sweetly as we approach them and bow gracefully, "Greetings travelers, may we welcome you to C.C.'s Spa and Resort. If you will follow us, we shall take you to your lodgings. From there a guide shall show you the services we offer to all those who come here."

Ornea clenches her jaw, fingers idly tapping the handle of her scimitar. She looks to me and I nod at her, giving her control over the situation.

"Thanks for your patronage, but we're here for your other more mechanical services. Our engine was damaged in an engagement with pirates and we need assistance. We'd be more then happy to pay for whatever fees you'll have to charge us."

The attendant's glance at each other, eyes shining as some unknown understanding passes between them.

"Grant us a moment, we shall fetch our mistress. She will decide what shall happen next."

"There's no need to fetch me girls, I'm right here."

They quickly spin around and bow deeply at the woman standing behind them atop the carved marble steps.

The woman stares at us from her place on the high steps, glancing down like we're a curiosity. Her piercing green eyes pass over every single member of our crew, likely cataloguing all our features and flaws.

She's quite a beautiful woman, her hair is black like with gold bands weaved into the braids. Her black dress hugs her body and flows beautifully down her curves. Like shadows across the night sky, shapes seem to shift and dance beautifully in the fabric.

Her arms are crossed as her passive face adopts an inviting smile. Goosebumps roll across my arms as I recognize that smile. It's the same smile Lamia had when we met her years ago, the smile of a wolf wearing the skin of a sheep.

"I overheard your plight earlier, and I'm sympathetic. A band of brigands have been terrifying the waters as of late, pillaging boats and scaring away precious company. Allow your crew to relax while I speak with you and your senior officers; follow me to my office and we can discuss more about repairs."

Ornea and I share a quick look. She nods and looks to her crew, they mumble and give affirmations before following one of the attendants up the stairs and along the path leading into the forest.

The other attendant stays behind with Circe as she approaches us, her smile sickly inviting. Her eyes sparkle as she looks at Mori.

My heart twangs as I see Mori perk up, "Hello miss Circe, my name is Moroiaca, but I prefer Mori. Hecate is my mother as well, so I suppose that makes us sisters."

Circe grabs her hands, stars twinkling in her eyes.

"Wonderful, absolutely amazing! I haven't met a sister of mine for many years, this is a wonderful opportunity for us. Tomorrow morning, I would like to speak with you early, there's much for us to discuss!"

Circe moves to me next, her eyes scanning my entire body up close. I shift a little under her gaze, attention has always left me a little flustered.

Wait… does it? No, it does. Samson likes getting attention, not so much for me. I scratch my arm and start thinking about how I feel.

I'm Samson Akira, but also Abigail. I haven't really noticed, but we're different yet the same beings. My mind isn't exploding with thoughts for creations and other gizmos, I feel a much quieter. It's uncanny, to have a brain exploding with activity suddenly turn peaceful.

Swapping bodies must be much more different then we anticipated. I can feel him with me still, but it's my personality and body that walks the earth.

My memories of Samson are still available to me, but my mind is different. It will… take some time to adjust to being me again.

"A Child of Athena hmm? Quite curious, I sense great power surrounding you, but it's rather unstable. We can talk about that tomorrow, there's other things to discuss first."

"Of course, Lady Circe. My name is Abigail, it's a pleasure to meet you." Circe hums to her self, giving me one last glance over.

Her eyes leave me, and I sigh quietly, my shoulders sagging in relief as she talks with Ornea. I felt very nervous when she was looking at me like I'm a doll or something. Ugh, I hope I don't have to do dress up!

Circe's known for luring girls into her service by promising that she'll make them 'perfect'. Artemis says the same things and her girls end up being arrogant killers with no morals. The perfect servants, devoted slaves that see things in absolutes; no room for anything outside of their limited range of understanding.

I shake my head and clear my negative thoughts. I've got to stop thinking that way! I do a small breathing exercise and remember Eirene's teachings back in Elysium.

'Let your negative emotions go. Peace is the reward for death, all worries are gone and far away. You choose your emotions in Elysium, your body has no say any longer.'.

If only I could do that. Unfortunately, I'm a weak person. Peace of mind isn't for failures like me.

* * *

Circe had brought us into her office after discussing a few things with Ornea back at the docks. As we travel through, I see that her resort is the epitome of modern design.

Lots of glass walls and decorations, paintings and water pieces everywhere. Patrons of all kinds relax blissfully in the many massage parlors and relaxation rooms. Animals ranging from a turtle to a bear snooze away in random and frankly silly places.

A grizzly in a hot tub? Sounds like Alice in Wonderland.

There's a few unaffiliated Nymphs lounging around too, they mingle and chat lightly with Samson's crew as the Naiad's relax.

I turn back to Circe's office, it's a large room with a massive desk made of dark Mahogany. I trace over the woodworking on the trim, admiring the skill of whichever craftsman carved it out.

Though it is quite saddening to see the wood here, the rings in the grain telling me the tree must've been ancient when it was chopped down.

"Oh lose the frown dear! All of the wood here came from already dead trees, no living tree was felled when I designed this building." I jump as Circe talks to me. Damn, that woman is _sharp_. Very few people can make a guess accurate like that!

"Thank you for telling me, it's very sad to see living things destroyed casually. I'm glad you source your materials humanely."

Her Cheshire smile is back, "I'm glad you appreciate my efforts, oh so very few do. You seem very close and considerate of nature; tell me, have you traveled with Artemis?"

I barely hold myself from jumping in shock, this woman is good. _Very_ good. Clearly, I underestimate her abilities of deduction.

She smiles sadly at me, and I look away, refusing to meet her eye. I've seen that look many times, that look should go to others.

 _I'm not ashamed._ _ **Yes you are.**_

"Poor girl, a shame those nasty Hunters dragged you into that little cult. You don't have to be ashamed here, in my home you're more then welcome to chose what you want to be. It's my life's desire, after all, to help beautiful young girls such as yourself find their true potential."

I smile softly, then quickly drop it when Mori gives me a hard look. Don't get drawn in, that's how _she_ hooked her claws into you the first time.

Mori grabs my hand and squeezes lightly, my heart flutters lightly and my head feels much more clear. Gods, I'm so glad she's in my life!

My confidence is much stronger as I look back to Circe.

"Thank you for the sympathy, Lady Circe, but it's alright. I'm happy as I am now, so there's no need to worry."

Her face tightens ever so slightly, and her voice is much stonier now.

"I see. Very well, let us return back to logistics. My girls have looked at your engine and hull, you'll have to stay grounded for around a week I'd say. Potentially longer if I have to order parts from Atlantis. Don't worry about housing or food, that's on the house. My price for repairs will have to wait for a moment until tomorrow when my mechanics have more to say. For now, we all shall rest."

Ornea, Mori and I say our thanks and follow an attendant to rooms set out for us. Before we head out, Circe gives us her formal welcomes.

"Oh, girls, one last thing. I personally welcome you to C.C.'s Spa and Resort, I sense we'll make magic here together."

* * *

Mori and I were led to a room for us to share. Once again, I'm disturbed by the cunning of Circe, she figured out with very little clues about the nature of Mori and I's relationship.

'The Couples Room'? Gods, this woman is good.

We change into sleeping clothes laid out for us and quickly turn the lights out and duck under the covers. I feel anxious sleeping with Mori, my heart beats rapidly and salacious thoughts leak in my mind.

Mori is Samson's girlfriend/fiancée, is it really appropriate for me to… love her as well.

We sleep with our backs to each other, usually they cuddle. Oh fuck, am I messing things up? Is-is it okay for me to even _be_ here?

"Hey, Abigail?" I flinch, she knows. "Are you really different from Samson?"

My voice is quiet, like the mouse I am.

"It's… complicated. We're different in some areas, and the same in others."

We're quiet again. I focus on the glass decorations in our room, letting the sparkling artwork distract me from my thoughts.

"Do you love me like he does?"

Deafening silence.

"I-I do."

She turns around and wraps her arms around me and pulls me close. Heat rises to my face as I blush furiously, closing my eyes in some pathetic attempt at hiding myself (and my feelings).

"Then it's okay. I love you, and I love him. It's complicated, but that doesn't change what we are."

Her lips kiss the back of my neck, and my fears melt away. I guess everything is okay after all, I haven't ruined them, and I haven't ruined us.

She turns me over and we match lips. Guess Samson's libido is shared between both of us? I'm… happy with this. All those years wasted mean nothing now, I can be _alive_ again, even if I'm Samson most of the time.

I hope Circe isn't going to be mad at us when she finds out Mori and I made love in her bed.

* * *

I awoke next morning feeling very refreshed, last night was a liberating experience. My time as a hunter was restrictive, _very_ restrictive.

Those promises of no responsibilities are such utter bullshit. You are the personal handmaiden to an Olympian in the hunt, they have some of the hugest responsibilities of all. One step out of line means death or years trapped as a small animal.

That's not freedom, that's _slavery, a_ nd those girls she manipulates follow her around like lost little puppies, it's disgusting.

I begin my breathing exercise again, let it go, Abigail, let it go.

Mori wraps her arms around me and rests her head over my shoulder.

"Whatcha' doin'? You sound a little funny when you huff and puff like that."

My smiles dips a little, "It's… a therapy routine I learned in Elysium. I do it when I start thinking too negatively, it helps me to move on from my bad thoughts."

She stills on my shoulder.

"You can talk about things with me, I'm here for you, always."

I lean my head against hers and smile again, "Thank you… sweetie. That means a lot to me."

She chuckles, the laugh rumbling from her chest against my back leaves me feeling like I'm in a state of Zen-calmness.

"Let's get ready, Circe's probably got some things lined up for us today. Remember, we _all_ leave this island."

I nod my head in affirmation, that witch isn't going to steal any of my friends, I'll make sure of it!

We quickly got dressed in our clothes, Mori helping me find a pair of pants that wont fall off my waist. Gods, I might die of embarrassment if I accidentally flashed Circe!

Sorry Samson, but those ugly blue jeans have to stay behind for a while! Mori gives me a nice pair of black bellbottoms to wear, the silver material of Juggernaut matching fairly well with my black pants.

Dear Gods, I wasn't supposed to get drawn into outfitting! Dammit!

There's a knock on our door and we call the person to enter. A tiny girl of an attendant opens the door and curtsies us from the door frame. Gods, she barely looks fourteen.

"Mistress Circe would like for Lady Abigail to meet in her office as soon as she's able. It's best not to dally, Mistress is already waiting for you."

Then she's gone. My heart pumps as scenarios start forming in my head. Ambush and counter attack plans fill my mind as I count my resources available to me.

Samson's cutlass ring, _Luminous_ , the silver dagger from Artemis, and Joseph's old cane not to mention the many abilities of Juggernaut.

My fingers rub the round edges of Samson's- _our_ Mana Pool Amulet. Magic is… kind of difficult. I just can't control the sorcery like Samson does, his mastery of the art is just simply beyond me, even with our shared memories.

I'm limited in that regard, but I'm confident in my combat abilities, especially with my bow. Not to rain on Samson's parade, but my martial skills are superior between us.

Mori pecks me on the cheek and gives me words of assurance, "You'll be fine, Circe is empathetic to all women. You have to be strong, she's going to try and worm her way into your mind, convince you she's the key to happiness. It's a lie, that's how she controls people. Use your wits, and you just may convince her to aid you on your own terms. You might learn something about magic, no strings attached if you play it smart."

"Don't worry, I can handle her. I've spent years circumventing Artemis's manipulation, I can do the same for Circe!"

She smiles and gives me a small kiss in goodbye.

"Go get her, you don't want to leave her _royal highness_ waiting!"

I grin at her one last time before I leave and follow the path back to Circe's office.

* * *

Circe grins and calls out to me like a long-lost friend as I enter through her door.

"Abigail! I'm so glad you could join me, we have so much to discuss!"

She walks over and wraps me in a big hug. I freeze as her warm arms ensnare me like a snake. Her hand tracing gentle circles along the small of back. This… this feels _wrong._

Circe twirls her finger around the loop of my ear, pushing away loose strands as she leans in close. Her soft breath leaving an uneasy feeling in my stomach as she gently whispers, _"You're a beautiful young lady, I'm very happy you came to me."_

That invasive hand of hers keeps circling my back, my heart pumps wildly like an engine gone rogue.

" _I know how you see yourself, but there's something I want you to see."_

Her hand traces down my spine, slowly inching to my lower back. I close my eyes, wishing for this disgusting witch to get her hands off me.

I want to stab her so hard right now, but I can't. It would be suicide to try and fight her, she's a freaking _goddess_ for goodness sake!

Thankfully her arms withdraw, and her voice returns to its normal Cheshire tone.

"This way dearie, I want you to look in this mirror of mine. Just excuse my odd request, but it is _key_ for me to help you become the woman you deserve to be!"

She grabs my shoulder from behind and pushes me so I'm standing in front of a tall body mirror. Circe stands behind me, her hands at my shoulders as I stare at my image reflecting in the mirror.

Everything is normal at first, same old me I always see in the mirror, when it suddenly begins to shift.

The reflection warps until a new image is reflected, only… it's still me. The new me looks taller, my hair is woven in a beautiful braid that highlights my long and sharp face. My nose looks perfect, not too pointy, and my eyes sparkle with mirth and happiness.

I trail my eyes down and take in my body; beautiful and lean muscles glisten under my armor, the body of a true warrior. I stand confident in the mirror, power radiating from me like I could slay any monster or god with little difficulty.

The me in the mirror looks and me and smiles, perfect teeth. This is… this is me, but not me. She's…

"The Perfect You." Circe finishes, "What you see here is what you wish to be, a powerful heroine with no flaws. A beautiful and fierce warrior, sure of herself and ready to tackle all foes with a big smile!"

That haunting copy of me in the mirror taunts me before she vanishes, leaving the _real_ me to reflect back. I reach a hand out and gently paw at the mirror, almost like I'm unconsciously wishing for the good me to come back.

Circe massages my shoulders as she leans over me, her smile feeling wicked as those piercing eyes stare at me from the reflection. Her predatory smile feels impossibly big as fresh tears spill down my cheeks.

I'm… pathetic. I've failed and failed and failed, over and over again I let people down. I couldn't save those captured by the Hunt, I couldn't even save myself when those lamia kidnapped me.

Like a coward, I took my own life. I let them win and break me into tiny little pieces, then I failed to even find my peace in Elysium.

I took the easy way out again and reincarnated into a wonderful young man who is now cursed with my sprit lingering in his body.

Circe reminded me of my flaws, she sunk her hooks in me and dragged the ugly truth to the surface.

I'm no hero, just a _burden_.


	30. Chapter 30

**A/N: Hey all, back for chapter 30. This in the finale for quest 3, so we've finally made it! I know this quest is shorter, but that's probably for the best. The other 2 might've felt kind of bloated, and I wanted to avoid that feeling this quest. Anyways hope you guys enjoy, we've got a special guest we haven't seen for a while coming back!**

* * *

 _End of Quest III_

 _With Abigail, summer 1967_

Circe is good. Really, really good.

But man, just _fuck_ her.

After the… mirror incident, she's been fawning over me. Picking at all the little weak spots in my psyche, breaking me down so she can rebuild me in an image she wants.

She almost had me too, but I've seen her kind before. Artemis is a manipulator, a thousand years of doing her bidding like a blind little sheep opened up my eyes to that truth. I can recognize someone of their kind from a mile away, Circe is no different.

After about half an hour of crying, I think I've come up with a good plan. Circe uses the promise of power to draw you in, so why not take it?

If I play along, then I might get some good rewards from this!

Man, was I always this greedy?

Yup!

Like Mori told me earlier, if I can resist Circe and play along with her games, I just might get some good knowledge.

Our boat will be fixed by the end of this week, so that means we have five days left on this island. Five days may not seem like much, but with a goddess playing with your emotions the entire time, things are going to be tricky.

We have to hold out, no one is getting left behind on this island!

After the mirror, Circe had taken me to a hot spring on her resort and made me relax in the pool while she left to do something.

My guess is she's going to talk with Mori, try and get her to become an apprentice or something. I'm not too worried though, Moir is strong and can see through Circe's bullshit no problem.

 _She's much stronger than me._

Oh dear gods this place is awesome though. I've never dipped in a hot spring before, but damn this one is great! I'm also thankful it's empty too, I don't like sharing a bath with others.

Fuck it was so weird when I was in the Hunt, bathing in a river with twenty five others was so freaking awkward.

I sigh in content and close my eyes. I'm just gonna take a nap right quick, twenty minutes max, okay maybe just an hour.

"Psst, Sam-bigail!"

I didn't scream, shut up!

Ornea's looking at me, her eye darting around suspiciously. I blush angrily and try and melt in the water.

"What the _fuck_ Ornea! I'm freaking naked dude, get the fuck out of here!"

She ignores me and slides into the spring, almost melting in the water.

"Look man, we might be in a spot of trouble. I don't know if we've got any money on the ship!"

"…What do you mean we don't have any money? We've got to have _something!"_

She scratches her eyepatch nervously. Wait, when did she get an eyepatch?

"Yeah I think we forgot to rob some stores when we were in Boston, the safe is empty."

Oh my gods, "What about Drachma's then? I thought you had money dude, you're the best crew to sail the seas. Surely, you've gotten some good money?

"About that… I kind of blew it all gambling. A high stakes card game with a Blemmyae and this old guy named Joseph went south. Someone lost a kidney, and I lost my old boat and all of its cargo."

I keep staring at her dumbly as she recounts her tale, rattling off about hijinks and debt. For the next thirty minutes she goes through her entire story until she finally ends up at how she was in Amphitrite's service.

"Then after that period of depression, Amphitrite bought me and the crew to run cargo. After that she gave us and the boat to you to pay off her debt, and that's why I have no money."

…Ughhhh. Can any of these things go right?

"That was an… interesting tale my dear."

I didn't scream, totally not at all. We turn around and, standing in her full nude glory, is Circe.

Holy shit, she's actually pretty hot.

Circe dips in the pool and sits across from me, giving Ornea a dissatisfied look.

"It's a shame you have no coins. Not to worry, I think we can make ourselves a deal here."

She pauses, letting dramatic tension build up for no reason really. What is it with goddesses and being so over dramatic?

"I would like for you, misses Abigail, to come clean."

A sense of danger fills in my gut. Ornea shifts beside me, her muscles tensing to react to any danger. Circe casually plays with her hair, clearly ignoring us and showing how unafraid she is.

"You have two souls, or at least one big one. Oh don't give me that look, I recognize the signs of magic anywhere and from anyone. Tell me, how is it that a demigod such as yourself can house two persons in one body?"

I take a second to my thoughts. Should I come clean? I probably should, lying to Circe is a dangerous thing, and I might land myself in serious danger if I do. Perhaps if I just… adjust the truth a little?

"I'm… an awakened soul, I guess. My other life, a man named Samson, shares my body. We can switch I guess, let one of us walk the earth for a time. I'm not sure how we can do it, but it's a recent ability."

Her eyes sparkle with curiosity, the revelation likely being the first of its kind she's ever heard of.

"How very… _interesting._ I propose a deal then. If you, miss Abigail, stay with me here on my island and become my ward, then I'll waver the fees and let all the other go free. What do you say?"

Ornea's head snaps to me, her eyes shining with worry and fear. I smile at her sadly, I desperately want to tell her I'm just playing Circe, that I'm not _actually_ going to stay.

I'll have to catch her when she's alone later, find a way to coordinate someway to get me out of here.

"I'll do it, if it means my friends can leave, then I'll stay to pay off our debt."

Ornea's lips are pulled back tight, she wants to argue with me _very_ badly right now, probably beat me over the head and call me an idiot.

Circe smiles, content with my answer, "Excellent, most excellent. You may spend the day to yourself, say good by to your friends. Come tomorrow we'll be very busy, I think you'll be a wonderful student. Enjoy yourself, miss Abigail, we have much work to do."

She pulls herself from the spring, Ornea whistling appreciatively as she stands and calls an attendant over.

The world suddenly seems to still as I see the young woman who comes over and begins to help clothe Circe.

Tanned skin, light chestnut brown hair and a pair of beautiful brown eyes. I… remember her, from _both_ of my lives.

Kara _freaking_ Anagnos, the Hunter of Artemis who framed Samson. The Hunter who scarred his chest and tried to kill him in a fit if fury. The Hunter who was supposed to be rotting away in an Asylum, only to be standing no less then ten feet away from me.

My eyes narrow as memories deeper then that flow into my mind. Memories of sisterhood and _betrayal._

* * *

 _With Abigail, summer 200 BCE_

Things aren't… going so well. My heart aches and fear closes in on me, my days are numbered. I've just insulted Artemis and questioned her morality.

Young boys, innocent to any sins have been slaughtered like cattle before me too many times. Their blood and bodies left to wither in the wilds, carcasses to be eaten by wolves and crows.

After my outburst, I had run away from the Hunt, from the hateful eyes of people I once considered my sisters.

Tear spills down my cheeks. I'm no here, I've failed to save so many lives, let so many people die.

"Abigail, are you okay?"

I quickly spin around, bow and arrow ready to shoot at a moments' notice. My eyes harden as I stare into the scared eyes of my closest friend and companion Kara.

"Why are you here?" I hiss as she raises her hands in the air, "Has she sent you here to kill me, to end the heathen that is me?!"

She shakes her head, "No! Absolutely not! I'm here to help you, I know somewhere you can go to hide from Lady Artemis!"

We stare each other down for a minute, my eyes scanning her for any signs of deception. Kara doesn't have her bow or her knife, she's completely unarmed.

I exhale and let my bowstring go slack, "I'm… sorry, Kara. Things have been difficult." I look at her and smile, "I appreciate you being here for me."

She walks over and pulls me into a hug, "We're sisters, even if everyone else has forgotten. But listen, we need to leave NOW. Artemis is coming after you, her hounds are tracking our scents right now!"

"Where are we going to go, no one's been able to escape from the hunt before?!"

She grins at me confidently, "Not until now, I've got the perfect plan! Follow me, we just have to get somewhere while we still can!"

She grabs my hand and starts running with me through the forest. I try and ask her where we're going, but she dismisses me, saying that I'll understand when we get there.

We've been running for a few hours; the sun is just starting to go down when we arrive at a large clearing in the forest.

"Stay here, I need to get something that will let us escape!"

Kara runs off into the woods, leaving me all alone in the clearing. I find a toppled log and sit down on it, thoughts of the previous day weighing heavy on my mind.

I can't believe the mess I've gotten myself into, why can't I control my temper! This-this whole situation is fucked!

Something rustles in the grass behind me. I spin around and point my bow at it, only there's nothing there!

I scan along the trees, trying to see if something's hiding out there. Sighing, I lower my bow and turn back around.

Suddenly I'm blasted in the chest by something and sent flying backwards. I choke on the air, trying to get oxygen back in my lungs.

Vines spring from the ground and wrap around my wrists and ankles. I cry out and use all my might to try and rip the vines off, but to no avail, they're too strong.

"Well, well, look at what we've caught. Little huntress got herself caught in the spider's web, such a pity. Here I thought you were supposed to be the best of the best, the _ultimate_ warrior."

A woman walks into my vision, no not walk. _Slithers_. My eyes widen in horror as a hybrid woman comes my way. The lower half of her body is that of a long serpent's where the rest is a beautiful woman. I sigh in relief when I see that she isn't medusa, but her _eyes_ show that she's another monster.

 _Lamia, former queen of Libya._

She slithers over and hovers over me, her tail wrapping around and constricting my body as she compresses tightly.

Lamia grabs my face lightly with her hand and peeks lazily into my eyes, turning my face around as she examines me.

"Hmm, you're right, she is a pretty little thing. Consider our debt settled now."

I go to say something, but her tail wraps around my throat and tightens. My head starts feeling light, and its hard to keep my eyes open.

"Ah-ah-ah, no talking dearie." She strokes my cheek with her clawed thumb, "Tsk-tsk, such a tragedy, to be betrayed by a friend in fear."

My eyes widen in disbelief as someone close to me comes around the side of Lamia, grabbing her arm bashfully as she refuses to meet my eyes.

"Come here, Kara dear, and say goodbye to your friend, I _want_ her to see the one who got her _killed._ "

Kara turns her brown eyes to me, they're puffy in tears and wide open in fear. Her mouth opens and closes, unable to say any words.

Tears spill from my eyes as I feel my heart shatter.

Kara…Kara _why?_

Lamia chuckles and picks up where Kara couldn't, "Guess she's got cold feet, not that I blame her. Betraying a friend is always juicy gossip. Suppose you'd want to know why, hmm?"

Only a choked hiss escapes my lips. Lamia give me a toothy smile and my eyes widen at the amount of needle teeth in her mouth.

"Good to see your enthusiasm. You see here, your _sister_ sold you out; We had a little deal, the two of us. She did a favor for me, and in return I'd make sure no one knows about her dark little secrets."

Lamia wraps her hand around my throat and forces my head to look up at her.

"You were a threat to her little schemes, the only one in the Hunt who could see through all the lies. You see, _fear_ made all this happen. Your friend, so devoted to her Mistress, would let her friend die if it meant she was safe. Now close your eyes sweetie, and when you wake up-"

Her eyes are only a few inches from mine, those emerald eyes like a serpent staring deep into my soul.

" _We'll make magic together."_

* * *

Kara's eyes widen as she sees me, fear writing across her face as I practically seethe in rage. Circe raises a curious eyebrow as she watches us, lips pulled in a frown as she calculates some unknown thought in her mind.

"I see you've met before. Hmm, curious. Come, Kara, we must be off."

And then they're gone. I'm shaking as I sit here in the spring, all those awful memories of her betrayal. _All those years being tortured by Lamia._

Ornea wades over and puts a gentle hand on my shoulder, "Hey, are you doing okay?"

I feel tears slipping down my cheeks and I lean back and let Ornea hold me.

"I-I remember here. She's… she betrayed me, sold me out to Lamia. _She's the reason why I was captured and tortured for years._ "

She wraps an arm around my shoulders and pulls me close. I idly note I'm still naked, and people might mistake this for us being lesbians.

Pshh, as if! Mori's my lesbian lover! …And also, my straight lover.

Man, being two people is weird and complex sometimes. Ornea scratches my head lightly. Is she… trying to comfort me?

"Damn dude, I'm… sorry about that. Want to go and kill her?"

"We probably shouldn't, might get in trouble with Circe. Speaking of which, we have to plan out my escape when the boat is ready."

She sighs in relief, "Phew, thought you were going to stay! Now to get out of here, the only obstacle really is Circe herself. Her attendants are only that, none of them are actually strong; we need something that gives us an edge over her."

"Do we have any vitamins or herbs from Hermes?"

"No such luck, only he has access to them. We have twenty Naiads, two demigods and a light warship."

A light bulb pops up over both of our heads. We have a _warship._ Ornea and I grin at each other, "Idea, we blow the island up!"

I put a hand on her shoulder, trying to physically calm her down, "Let's just… blow unpopulated stuff up. We use it as a distraction, and I escape during the insanity."

She huffs and crosses her arms, "Fine, I guess we can do that."

I roll my eyes at her, "Now get out of here, I'm still naked!"

* * *

I hack and start coughing like crazy as Circe looks down on me, her eyes twinkling in delight as this stupid fucking potion of hers starts working its magic.

She pats my back lightly, her lips pulled into a slightly unnerving smile, "There, there dearie, it's almost over. Don't try and fight it, let the potion permeate every aspect of your being, let it fill a void of power within you."

*HACK! * Fuck- *HACK! *- you! Gods, I _never_ should have agreed to be this bitches apprentice! I down the rest of the potion she's having me drink and collapse to my knees on the floor.

The poison-sorry the _potion_ she's given me is a handy little thing, and something entirely worth being tortured essentially by it. This potion acts as Circe's blessing, it allows the drinker the ability to generate their own mana inside of their bodies.

Thanks to this little concoction, I can use magic even without my Mana Amulet. I'm still keeping it however; two sources of power really help to make a magic user even stronger.

Look at what happened with Mori when she had my Amulet, her strength was practically multiplied with how she was whipping high-tier spells around like it was nothing!

I'm not going to be anywhere near that strong anytime soon though, Mori's natural abilities have been honed through a decade of hard work and training. It's going to take me just as long to reach that level.

I can't help but smile to myself however; playing Circe like this for the power and skill she's going to teach me is the perfect revenge for her drudging up old memories and feelings!

Now what am I going to do about Kara? I can't kill her or confront her, it would blow my cover and land me in hot water with Circe. I'll just have to act like I don't know her, if she believes I'm actually the girl she knew she might blow my cover and tell Circe.

No way I'm letting her get away with _another_ betrayal!

Circe lightly pets my hair as my vision starts to clear up, gods why won't this woman stop touching me?!

"There you go, I sense my blessing has taken hold. Congratulations, you've awoken the inner power within you, and now we can begin training. Hold out your hands and concentrate, use the energy within you and imagine it flowing out of your fingertips."

Easy enough, I remember Mori teaching Samson similar things when he was first learning to use magic. I close my eyes and relax, trying to feel for whatever energy Circe was having me look for.

It takes a second, but I actually start feeling something. In my chest, I feel a light, tingling feeling, like friendly electricity sparking in my heart.

Circe said imagine it flowing into my finger, so that's what I do. It's odd feeling the energy move through me, a completely foreign feeling.

I open my eyes and am amazed by the sight before me. Wisps of silver light trail off my fingers, floating in the air like energized smoke. Holy shit, _this_ is what magic feels like? Damn, Mori must feel completely sure of herself if power like this is always available to her!

Circe lifts me to my feet and starts guiding me through her resort. I see my crew lounging about and relaxing, a few getting piss-drunk and scaring the attendants as they yell for more wine. Jeez, was Dionysus their father or something?

We pass by the bear in the hot tub, whom Ornea is sharing it with, and round around a corner that leads outside.

Birds chirp and tweet about melodically, the wind rustles the leaves and the pleasant midday sun shines down upon everything in the training grounds out here. Gods I'm going to throw up, this place is so sweet and cheery I'm actually getting sick.

Circe drags me over to an archery range and hands me an old looking bow.

"Let's try something out first. Many mages like yourself often can only use their powerful magic in certain ways, your unconscious brain affects your magic and allows it to manifest in ways that match your character the most. You are an archer, that's clear as day. I'm quite curious to see if my predictions are correct."

She gives me a quiver full of arrows and snaps her fingers, wicker targets spring from the ground at the end of the range, each at varying distances.

"Remember what I told you, focus the magic into the arrow. Use your imagination, your mind manifests the magic into something besides mana. Give the magic _meaning_ and push it into the arrow, you'll be pleased with the effects."

I notch an arrow and aim down range. Focusing on the feeling in my chest, I guide it into the arrow and think of a certain feeling. Mori taught Samson a handy trick, that feelings give more power to certain kinds of spells.

The arrow starts glowing an icy blue, cold wisps of air leak off of it as the power grows inside of it. I release the arrow and it hits a bullseye in the closest target, causing it to flash-freeze over before falling backwards and shattering into tiny bits.

My mouth drops slightly as I look at my handywork, damn this is going to be useful!

Circe puts a hand on my shoulder, smiling happily at the destroyed target. Evidently, she's pleased with the skill I've shown.

"Well, that's quite a pleasant surprise. Most fail at their first use of magic, but not only have you done it first try, you've done it with an amazing amount of power and strength. Congratulations are in order, you've become the most successful apprentice I've had in over two-hundred years, even my Niece Medea couldn't cast her first spell as successfully as you have. Well done."

Okay, so maybe the praise makes me feel good about myself, what of it?! Anyways… dude, elemental arrows!

I can't help but smile to myself, playing Circe like this is honestly some of the most fun I've had ever. I can't wait to see the look on her face when stab her in the kidney and blow her sap up!

"Excellent, now let us try again. This time focus on a different emotion, change the effect on the arrow and show me the abilities of your magic."

I notch and aim my bow at another target. I think of my internal anger, and sure enough my arrow catches ablaze, almost looking like an arrow made of pure molten magma.

An arrow flies through the air, and a target is destroyed as lava explodes out on impact. Well then, this is going to be fun!

* * *

"I must be off, Abigail, I'll return within the hour. I trust you to continue make the most of your time here, Kara here shall be your attendant in my absence. You'll get along well will you not?"

"Yes Ms. Circe."

That wolf smile of her is back, "Good. Tata, dearie, have fun!"

Circe walks out of the room and disappears further into her resort to do some 'business'. I suspect she's not actually doing anything, besides leaving me alone in a room with Kara. Maybe Kara's a spy or something?

Speak of the bitch, Kara motions to a comfy looking massage table.

"If the miss would remove her gown, I can begin the service."

I raise a curious eyebrow at her as she bows respectfully. Damn, what in the world happened to this chick? Our last memories of her was Zoe and Phoebe dragging her away after Artemis took her blessing away.

If I remember the plan was for her to be admitted into an asylum. Perhaps she was, and then released? If that's the case how did she end up in Circe's service?

"Well, miss, I think first we should exchange names should we not? It is only polite after all."

Her breath catches for a moment before she rises and smiles sweetly.

"I am Kara, a loyal attendant to Circe. What is the misses name?"

"…Abigail."

I lay down on the massage bed and let Kara do her work. Her hands masterfully knead at the knots along my back, though I'm still very tense. She's betrayed me once before, being in a position of weakness around her is making me very nervous.

"I was a Hunter once." She says, "But I had made a mistake that cost me my position. I was thrown into an asylum where Dionysus eventually heard my prayers."

I'm quiet as I listen to her story. Though this leaves me in a precarious situation as Kara likely knows through Circe that I was also a Hunter.

"Dionysus gave me to Circe, and over the years I've grown and matured. I suppose it's a blessing in a way, the ability to grow up and become wise."

Her hands then start massaging the crook of my neck, and I tense as I feel her fingers inching their way down, making it more then easy for her to strangle me in only a few seconds.

I feel her lean down and gently whisper into my ear, "I don't remember you ever being in the hunt, and I'm over three thousand years old now. How is it that you were a Hunter, and most importantly _left?_ "

Silence stays between us, her hands dangerously close to grabbing my esophagus.

"I joined after you. I was only in the Hunt for a short time before I chose to leave, Artemis took pity on me and allowed me to freely. I'm on a quest for my mother now, to be redeemed for betraying her for another goddess. It must've been only a year or so that I was a Hunter."

Kara's hands retreat and begin rubbing down all the sore spots along my back, the dreary atmosphere of the room becoming happy and cheerful once again.

I sigh quietly in relief, I've gotten her off my back. For now, at least, I can only hope Kara is satisfied and no longer suspicious.

"Wonderful! I'm glad you got out before you'd really start to regret it! I've known many Hunters who went for over fifty years before realizing the brother they loved the most had already died. I've known almost as much who've taken their own lives in agony, the pain of what they lost being too much for them."

I'm well aware of that fact considering I've been there to burn the bodies when we found them. I tried explaining to Artemis almost a thousand times why her Hunters took their lives, but she is adamant that men were to blame. Anything to feed her own bias and hatred I guess.

"Alright now let's get you dressed, your friend's boat is getting fixed today. You want to look your best when you see them off!"

Ah fuck, it's been a week already hasn't it?

Well, let's get this show on the roll. Man, I can't wait to stab Circe in the kidney and punch her face!

* * *

I can see _The Gauntlet_ shining new and looking good as ever as I walk down the path with Circe. My friend's faces are dreary as they act like I won't ever be seeing them again. One of the Nymph's is even crying while shouting about how she missed her chance with me.

Ew, I'm only a lesbian for Mori!

I go to start down the rest of the path and be with my friends while they leave, but Circe puts a hand on my shoulder and physically pulls me back. Gods, this woman is strong!

"Ah-ah-ah, you won't be seeing them off." My heart stills, "Come with me to my office. There's things we need to discuss."

I've said it before and I'll say it again; Circe's a bitch!

We're back in her fancy office, and she circles around me like a shark with her hands behind her back. I keep my head low and look at the ground, I don't want her to see my eyes and become suspicious.

"You'll have to forgive my actions, I've seen similar events happen before. Wouldn't want my new apprentice stealing from me and leaving without fulfilling her promise hmm?"

She puts her hands on my shoulders and whispers over my ear.

"You're quite an enigma, Abigail. It's been quite a long time, but I remember who you are; _Abigail the Kind, the Lieutenant of Artemis."_

Fuck.

"Now how is it that you walk this earth once again? I sensed the awoken soul within you, and you told me of your life as a Child of Athena named Samson. But that was a lie, wasn't it? You're not Abigail at all, you're just a filthy boy wearing her skin!"

Her hands start to crackle lightly with energy, and I feel the heat burning the skin on my shoulders.

I barely hiss out, "W-wait! I _am_ Abigail!" Her hands grip tightly, like vice grips and I groan as my bones creak, "Lies! I brought you here and _this_ is how you repay me?!"

"No! I wasn't lying! He transformed into me with a spell, we're two separate people sharing a body!"

Her magic stops, and that painful grip of hers leaves my shoulders. Circe pushes away and starts pacing around the room, her lips pulled into a frown.

"Does he control your actions?"

"…No. I am who I am, he's not in charge."

She chuckles lightly, "Good, very good." Circe spins around and walks over towards me, her hands grabbing the sides of my arms.

"Then keep him away. In time I might be able to remove the rat entirely, but for now keep your other half hidden. Do this and I'll reward the miracle of your rebirth with magics long lost to most. Promise me this, and I'll make you my immortal handmaiden; you'll be as powerful as a Child of Zeus and as wise as my mother herself! What do you say?"

"I-I promise. I'll pledge myself into your service and become the next Immortal Witch."

She smiles and pulls me into a hug, lightly stroking my hair.

"Thank you, I'm glad you agreed. I've always wanted a true apprentice, someone to be by my side. Someone to call my daught-"

Circe shrieks in pain as I cut her off and drive my silver dagger into her kidney. She paws at the wound as her golden blood leaks out onto the floor.

Her eyes are ablaze in rage, tears slipping down her cheeks at my betrayal.

"Y-you little bitch! I'm going to-"

I cut her off again by punching her right across the jaw. She crumples to the ground and I quickly get the fuck out of there!

Circe's roars of rage echo through the resort, her attendants scrapping around trying to keep all the animal patrons calm as their instincts begin to return. Some of the predators become agitated and lash out at prey animals nearby, blood flying as their wild instincts return.

I punch an attendant in the face and push her away as I bust through the glass of the front entrance. _The Gauntlet_ is just down the hill, only a minute sprint and I'm home free!

I hurtle over a roaring bear, but my body collides into some invisible wall and I slam back down onto the bears head. The beast roars and goes to bite my face, but I stab my dagger into its mouth. It falls onto me, dead, and I struggle to push it off.

Looking behind me, I see the furious eyes of Circe, pure power and magic seeps from her emerald eyes as she stares hatefully at me.

She's panting and clutching her side, ichor flowing between her fingers and dripping down her once beautiful dress.

"I told you, you're not going anywhere!"

 _Luminous_ appears in my hand and I notch an arrow, fire slipping along the shaft as I aim right for Circe's heart.

She throws her head back and laughs, coughing occasionally with it, "What a fool! I'm a Goddess of Magic, you're nothing to me! Go ahead, shoot me and see what happens. You'll be surprised by the results!"

Half a dozen fire-arrows fly off and hit her heart, only… they bounce right off. She smiles and a faint greenish aura shimmers around her body.

"Like it? It's a specialty of mine, Magic Skin. No swords or arrows can break my shield spell, rendering me completely invulnerable to any weapon you have!"

Crackling blue energy flies from her fingers, and I barely duck out of the way as the bear's corpse explodes in a shower of gore and blood.

Oh gods, that's gross!

"Try and run all you want Little Hunter! This is the den of a wolf, and you're just a little lamb _running_ into the slaughter!"

She raises her hands and prepares to blast me with another spell, when her eyes suddenly widen as she looks over my shoulder.

I hear a whistling, and realization suddenly hits me as I turn away from Circe and run away as fast as I can.

A deafening roar explodes behind me as a round from my ship's main cannon collides with Circe, the shockwave throwing me forward and tumbling down the path.

I groan as my body aches and protests, but I force myself to stand none the less. Hands grab under my armpits and start leading me towards the boat.

My ears are ringing like crazy, and my vision is kind of fuzzy, but I make out the angel that is Mori; those sweet and kind green eyes of hers make my heart flutter and my nerves calm down. Even though she has the same color as Circe, her eyes are much calmer and peaceful.

She's better then Circe.

I'm brought onto a boat and loading into a bunk in the Sickbay, Mori by my side the whole time.

"So, have fun with Circe?"

"Heh, loads of it. I got to stab her in the kidney and punch her face!"

She snorts and gently squeezes my hand, "Glad you had a fun time. Now rest up, we've got a few days until we reach the Island of the Golden Fleece."

Ah shit, there's still that bit. Welp, I hope Polyphemus isn't a hassle to take care of!

* * *

The Island of Polyphemus is _gorgeous_. Rolling green meadows and vegetation as beautiful as the Hesperides Garden cover every patch of land here. The grass looks like clouds, and creatures other and animals lazily graze on the rich green leaves.

Then a herd of fluffy sheep roll past and devour the peaceful herbivores like land piranhas, leaving white bones behind as they walk away and lay down on the grass elsewhere.

Our crew gulps as we look upon the infamous guardians of the fleece; Flesh-eating Sheep.

Gods, those things are massive!

I look back at Ornea and Mori on the command deck, "Alright, we have to drive those sheep away if we're going to get the fleece. We've got decent line of sight here, so we just bomb the island and drive them away. Or kill them if we can."

"And what about the Cyclops? Legends say he's big and too strong to fight. You'd need a Son of Poseidon or something to take him down!"

"We won't have to worry about him. When we bomb the island, the sheep will leave. All we do then is sneak through, cut a shred of fleece and skedaddle back to the boat. Plus, if we see him we just blow him up!"

Mori and Ornea nod, likely happy with the plan. That and blowing crap up with a heavy cannon is _really_ fun!

A loud boom suddenly rattles off on the island, the shockwave jittering our ship and causing us to stumble slightly.

We race to the window and look at the island, smoke and fire billows out like crazy, the ground torn up and destroyed into a large crater.

Mori looks at Ornea, "Was that ours?"

"That's… too big. Our gun can't make a boom that big!" Her eyes widen, and she turns around to the other window and looks out to the sea.

Mori and I follow, and in the distance, a blot appears. I focus my eyes, and the looming danger become apparent.

Torn gothic hull, rows of three-pronged battleship cannons, an angry man in golden armor screaming his head off and promising us a painful death.

He points his sword at our boat, and his guns _explode_ as fire blasts from the barrels. The ocean around us erupts as the shells detonate all around us, rocking our boat violently as the waves slam against our hull.

"Ah dammit!" Ornea runs over to the speaker mic and screams into it, "GET TO YOUR STATIONS, ENEMY VESSEL HAS RETUNRED! ALL GUNS OPEN FIRE! AIM FOR THE CREW AND MAIN GUNS!"

Ah fuck, ah shit! How are we going to sink that thing?! With Chrysaor at the helm, his ship's going to get work done!

A boulder quietly sails across the sky and slams hard into a gun battery, deforming the metal and rendering it completely useless.

We look back at the island. A HUGE and VERY pissed off Cyclops is hurtling boulders like Hercules across the sky at the Dreadnought.

"BE QUIET! YOU SCARE SHEEP!" Another car sized boulder flies over the water and slams into the hull, the boat responding with a cannon blast that collides with the cliff face above Polyphemus. Boulders fall down and land by his feet, the Cyclops yelling a curse and grabbing one of the boulders that fell and throwing it back in response.

Well then, that's pretty awesome for us actually.

Our gun booms and a round is launched at the enemy ship, the hull still scarred and warped from our sideswipe we did last week.

Fuck, Chrysaor must be keeping his ship afloat, there's no way otherwise that boat can be on the water with that big of a hole in the side!

"AIM FOR THE STARBOARD HULL!" Ornea spins from the mic system and grabs my jacket, "Go get that stupid fleece! Mori and I can take care of this buffoon, just get that shit quickly while we sink this asshole again!"

Mori goes to protest, but Ornea picks me up and throws me through the open window, I fall for a second until my back slams into the warm tropical water.

 _The Gauntlet_ then picks up speed and starts racing towards Chrysaor's ship, machine gun and cannons fire flying from our boat as Ornea engages in fierce naval combat; frigate vs. battleship.

Fuck, they won't stand a chance! I have to get the fleece and get back out there to help them, but how? They're fighting way out at sea?

I sigh and start swimming towards the island. Godsdammit Ornea!

* * *

Black smoke rolls across the fields as stray shells from the battle collide with the island. I found a small beach and followed a trampled path up it and higher into the cliffs where the rest of the island's sites are at.

My wet clothes cling to me as I grumble to myself angrily, stupid Ornea! Stupid golden piece of shit! Stupid fucking quest!

The hair on my arms raise, and I stop and look around behind me. It felt like… someone was watching me.

I close my eyes and focus on hearing, but I can only make out the echoes of gunfire and explosions.

Guess there's nothing out there. I huff and continue following the trail, I pass the partially collapsed cave that Polyphemus must live in (gods the stench!) and head towards the crevice that must lead to the other half of the island.

I freeze when I hear loud grunting coming from across the chasm. Fuck, I've got to hide! Only there's nowhere to go besides… the cave.

Hurtling over the boulders I squeeze through a small gap and slip inside of the cave. The ground shakes as Polyphemus walks towards the entrance. I slink back into the shadows and hide behind a big pile of bones.

"WHAT?! WHO PUT ROCKS?!" The cyclops growls and starts grabbing a couple under his arms, grumbling angrily as he carries them away, "STUPID BIG NOISE. SHEEPIES RUN, NOW I HERD AGAIN!"

I do my best not to snort, gods this thing just sounds like a giant twenty-foot-tall baby!

His feet stomp away, and I let a few minutes pass. He doesn't come back, now's my chance!

The entrance has been opened a bit, so climbing over them was much quicker than before. I reach the opened gap and look out at the ocean, when suddenly I'm launched backwards by some invisible force.

I crash hard onto the ground and rub my jaw. That felt like… I was punched my someone. But by who? I look around, I'm the only one here.

My cutlass forms into my hand and I slowly scan around the room looking for… something.

Something slams into the back of my head _hard_ and I stumble forwards. I slice my blade around me, hoping to catch my attacker with it.

Nothing happens. There's no blood, no cry of pain.

Suddenly my back stings and I whip around and slice at the air behind me. Still silence.

I feel around my back at the fabric, no cut or blood. But I know what being slashed by a sword feels like, someone tried to cut my back open. Thank gods Samson is a skilled craftsman, Juggernaut is basically un-pierceable.

However, I'm still at a disadvantage here. I can't see my enemy and they're practically silent. I spin around and slash in a wide arc.

Dammit, I missed!

I hiss and fall to a knee, blood seeps from a new wound on my thigh. I force myself to stand again and close my eyes, focusing on the sounds around me.

The distant sounds of battle wash over my ears, but I ignore it and try and focus on different sounds. The winds blow gently, grass swishing in the breeze. The low hum of air flowing in the cave, reverbing off the sides.

Something crunches to my left.

Polyphemus grunting as he launches a boulder far out at sea. Sheep bleating in fear as stray artillery rounds slam into the island.

A rock is kicked lightly right behind me.

Waves bash against the shores, insects buzz around wildly as smoke chokes the air from them. The dirt to my right shuffles as a slow shoe step's lightly on it.

Now!

I lash out with a furious cry, my fist meeting what I hope to be the face of my attacker. They cry out and land on their butt hard.

Female by the sounds of it, I draw my dagger in my other hand and get into a combat stance. I hiss as my thigh wound shifts, but I ignore it and question my foe.

"Who are you! Answer before I take your eyes from your head!"

They just laugh wildly, and the air shimmers into existence as a form is sprawled out on the floor, a baseball cap lying just out of reach. In a split second she's on her feet, duel daggers in her hands as those familiar eyes bore into me.

Kara smiles, "You've grown soft _sister!_ Or should I say, Samson!"

I reel back, how-how did she know?!

Her grin opens up even wider, "Don't look so shocked, lying was never your strong suit! I put it together overtime; listening in on your conversations with Circe, that feeling of déjà vu in my belly, it all added up. What really set me off was what you said when you introduced yourself, _'Well, miss, I think first we should exchange names should we not? It is only polite after all'."_

She snarls at me, saliva dripping from the corners of her mouth, "THOSE ARE HIS WORDS!" Kara inhales sharply and closes her eyes. She opens them again, and her cockiness is back, "It makes sense now. You're the reincarnation of my sister, and you're wearing her skin like a costume to sneak around and feel powerful. YOU'll DIE FOR THAT!"

She launches at me with a shrill cry of rage, her daggers like a whirlwind around me. I block, parry and counter, but Kara's just as old as I am. Her skills are just as sharp as her knives.

Slowly cuts develop across my arms as she whittles past my defense. Damn that cut on my thigh! I can't fight optimally with it; my footwork is too damaged!

Kara growls as her daggers glide harmlessly off my chest, so she quickly aims up and slashes across my eye, blade raking across my glasses and sliding over my left eye.

I shriek but use the injury to my advantage and drive my dagger into Kara's hip. She roars, and pommel strikes my shoulder and kicks me away.

Sliding to a stop my thigh screams in protest, but I push through the pain and charge Kara. My cutlass pushes hard against her defense as I whittle my dagger through and cut her across her belly.

She retaliates and goes for the wound on my thigh again, this time cutting through it and giving the wound the appearance of a cross. Fuck dude, what a bitch!

It's a bloody back and forth between us, daggers and swords drip red with fresh blood as the island starts shaking violently from a series of stray artillery rounds.

Kara punches me across the face and pushes her calf into my neck as her hands hold my arms down. She pushes her leg forward and starts strangling me with it, blood from her wounds seeps down her leg and starts dripping over my face.

"IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT! I WAS HAPPY, I HAD A FAMILY, YOU TOOK THAT AWAY FROM ME!" She raves in my face, "I LOST EVERYTHING AND SPENT YEARS ROTTING IN THAT ASYLUM!"

I snarl at her at struggle against her hold on me, "YOU LOST EVERYTHING YOURSELF! I DIED BECAUSE OF YOU, THEY TORTURED ME FOR YEARS! WE WERE A FAMILY, WE WERE _SISTERS!"_

Her grip lightens slightly as horror crosses her face, "A-Abigail? Is it really you?"

Tears prickle at her eyes, and I become even more furious. With a roar of rage, I push her off of me and start wailing on her face with my fists, "YOU. DON'T. GET. TO. BE. **SAD!** "

I stand up, panting as I look down at the traitor that was my sister once upon a time. Blood drips down my wounded eye as my body stings from the numerous cuts. The cave shakes again, and rocks start falling down from the ceiling.

I feel wetness on my cheeks and feel the liquid, tears. Sobs wrack my body as all the emotions of betrayal fill my heart.

"Why," I manage to choke out, "Why did you do it? We were friends. Just… why…"

"I-I was afraid. Artemis was suspicious of my loyalty, and I thought I heard her tell you to turn me in. I was afraid, afraid you knew my dark secrets, so I struck a deal with Lamia. I helped her capture a Legendary Horse of Strife, and in return she would take the blame for your death."

She looks away in shame as I look upon her in horror, "You were my sister. I was going to run away, leave the Hunt forever. There was no point… no point."

"…I had no choice. Lamia wanted Hunter blood… it was you or me."

"…So you chose me."

"…Yeah."

She coughs as her body starts going slack, at the end of all of this, Kara's only mortal. She has no godly heritage in her at all, one-hundred percent pure human.

I snort lightly to myself, here I am, a demigod and former lieutenant of Artemis bleeding profusely because of the skill a mortal has. Ironic really, mortals are far more capable then the Gods ever believed.

Kara's brown eyes meet mine as the cave slowly starts collapsing, tears spill from cheeks as she stares blankly at me. Looks like the weight of all her actions has broken her completely.

I look at my silver dagger, the blood glinting off of it as I ponder my next action. Kara's here defeated, and that leaves me with a choice.

Kill her or save her.

Kara decides for me.

Her breathing becomes ragged and I kneel down by her side, taking her hands into my own as I pray to myself that she'll make it through in the end, no matter how in vain it will be.

"K-Kara! You're fading, hold on! I-I'll get help!"

She coughs, bloods spitting out as she tightens her weak grip, "N-no… leave me here. Save yourself, it's over… for me."

Tears are streaming down my face, sobs coursing through me. Kara smiles and coughs out more blood as she struggles out, "I-I… was always jealous of you. You were always favored, always _loved._ "

I laugh lightly and wipe away the tears from my good eye, I do my best to put on a strong face for my sister. There's no need for us to be sappy here.

"It's because I knew the difference between what was right and what was wrong. I let my thoughts guide my actions, I wasn't possessed by the philosophy of the Hunt." I squeeze her hand, "I had hoped to change things, to bring honor and understanding to _all_ of my sisters, but then…"

"I betrayed you. Maybe things would've been better if you were still there, maybe many innocent mortals would still possess their lives. Honor and morality, huh?" She chokes out another bloody laugh, "Heh… maybe I'll figure that out in the underworld."

Her eyes slowly begin to close, the life fading slowly away.

"Goodbye sister." I whisper into her ear, embracing her one last time while we still can.

She wraps a weak arm around me, "Goodbye… Huntress."

And then she's gone.

* * *

The fleece, it's a glorious thing. Golden aura, the aura of the gods seeps off of it, feeding the land with the essence of life itself.

Even now it's restoring the island to its glory, grass grows from patches of charred land and the holes blasted into the island patch themselves over with new dirt and stone. So long as it's here, this island is nearly a paradise.

I grab a section of the fleece with a bloody hand, the fur feeling as soft as the clouds and for a second, I hesitate. Can- can I _really_ defile such a pure thing?

The healing magic begins flowing into my body, all of the cuts from my battle healing over, mending at a speed ambrosia could never achieve. My wounded and foggy eye clears up, my vision sharpening as much as it can.

I slice a scrap of fleece off and turn back towards the beaches, the dingy Kara followed us with is anchored and ready to take me to my friends.

Any sense of hesitation is long gone now, too many people have died for Samson and I to complete these quests, there _has_ to be a reward for all of these… sacrifices.

I spin the dingy around and start up the engine, and in to time I'm sailing across the water and towards the still raging battle between two warships.

The emotions and weariness from the past hour weigh heavy on my mind, I think I'll just… go for the time being. I touch the amulet on my neck, and my body tingles and shifts.

I think Samson should finish things here.

…And I will. Thank you for your help, Abigail, we'll switch off again later.

 _Thank you…_

Smoke spills out in the air over the water, oil staining great patches as I race the dingy closer to my ship. Explosions and gunfire exchange between the ships, Ornea taking _The Gauntlet_ and running circles around Chrysaor's battleship, expertly avoiding the heavy guns but still suffering from lighter mortars and guns.

Smoke and fire bellows out from my ship, I can hear Ornea and Chrysaor yelling insults and curses at each other from the command towers of both vessels.

I close my eyes and say a silent prayer to Eris, it's all I can think of for help right now. She's likely the only god who's willing to listen to me… she's our only hope.

My body suddenly shifts, like I'm being torn from reality and deposited somewhere else.

Mori and my crew cry out in shock as I suddenly appear on the deck of my ship. Mori lunges at me and wraps me in a big hug, practically squeezing me like an anaconda.

"Samson, you're okay!"

I smile and melt into her embrace, fuck I've missed her so much!

We look back at Eris as she picks at her nails with a nail file.

"You need help kid?" She picks her head up and looks at the carnage that's befallen the deck of my ship.

"What have you done with my guns?!" Mori groans in annoyance, and Ornea yells from the top of the command tower, "Can you just help us woman?!"

Eris clicks her tongue and deflects a stray bullet round with her hand, "I don't know, I really liked those guns!"  
Suddenly Chrysaor yells out from his ship and points his sword at Eris, "KILL THE BITCH!"

"THE FUCK HE JUST CALL ME?!" Eris screams out, her voice overpowering the roar of war by several magnitudes. I swear I even hear Polyphemus faintly say, 'Ow my ears!' from his island.

"Everyone better hold onto something!" Eris commands, and everyone races around and finds something sturdy to grab on to. She snaps her fingers, and the boat explodes in a vortex of red smoke.

After second it vanishes, and suddenly we're all falling. We cry out as our boat SLAMS into something hard, metal groans and screams as it suddenly clicks what just happened.

She just dropped us on top of the Dreadnought!

Eris leans over the edge and starts hollering at the sinking halves of the larger warship, "WHO'S THE BITCH NOW GOLDEN BOY!?"

We all stare at her in shock as she hurls insults for far longer then necessary. She stops after a minute and looks back at us, "What?"

"U-uh nothing!"

"Yeah we're cool!"

"That was awesome, we love you!"

Other such variations fly from my crew as Eris blushes and smugly looks away, "Why thank you! Glad _some people_ think so highly of me!"

I sigh and walk over towards her, "Hey Eris, think you can send us home? We're all pretty tired man."

She taps her chin and looks away in thought, "Meh, why not? Good thing Max is looking out for ya', I'll do it as a favor for him."

Her eyes glint mischievously, "Better find something to hold on to!"

She doesn't have to tell us twice!

The smoke around us vanishes, and Mori and I find ourselves in a steamy bathroom. The door to the shower opens, and a surprisingly jacked Max walks out… stark naked.

He shrikes _loudly_ and I look up at the ceiling, trying not to blush fiercely.

"Oh my god guys! What are you doing here?!"

I keep looking at the ceiling, "Okay first of all I'm not going to look down. Second, we need a place to crash for the night."

He shakes his wet hair and I see him smiling at me in the edge of my vision, "Well yeah sure. Mori can you hand me a towel?"  
She doesn't respond.  
"Mori!?"

"Right, right...damn Eris is lucky!"

After that little… incident, Mori and I are sitting down on Max's couch, practically melting into the soft cushions. She intertwines her hand with mine and lays her head on my shoulder.

"So, have fun on the island?"

I do my best not to laugh, "Something like that."

A few more minutes pass. I reach into my jacket and pull out a small box and hand it to her. She gasps as she opens it and reveals a white diamond ring with a silver band.

"I-is this…?"

I smile and lean my head on top of her head, "Wanna get married?"

Her smashing her lips against mine tells me it's a yes.

* * *

 _With Samson, summer 1969_

A few years has passed since I properly proposed to Mori, a few years since I created Ram, the last piece of my equipment.

…A few years since I've seen my mother.

Mori and I have been happily married since then, after finally after a long period of saving money and setting up our enchanted home in my Van, we're on our honeymoon.

Joseph has… passed away. He had a really bad stroke last year, he didn't make it through. As awful as it is, he's finally at peace. I'm sure I'll get an earful from him when I pass away about letting him live like a crazy person for as long as we did.

But that's a long time away.

For now, Mori and I are enjoying ourselves in the Bahamas. The beautiful crystal waters, the amazing sea creatures that call this place home; Polyphemus's island may seem like a paradise, but this place actually _is._

There's beauty in nature that's not controlled by gods, pure wild in its finest. No gods, no spirits or magic, just nature.

Pan would be proud.

Mori and I look out at the beach from our tall sweet, both of us relaxing and sipping martinis on our picturesque deck.

She leans over and pecks me on the cheek, "I'm going to go and take a shower. Remember, Dolphin Watching is at three."

I roll my eyes, "Yes mother, I'll be ready by then." She gives me 'the look', "I promise!"

Mori snorts and walks away into the bathroom. I lean back in my chair and let the hot tropic air warm my bones, practically melting into it.

I hear feet peddling behind me, "Forget something dear?"

"I haven't, but perhaps you have, my son." I flinch and scramble out of my chair. Mother raises her eyebrow and I quickly tie my lounging robes back up.

"H-hello mother! What's uh… up?"

"…We've yet to finish our work."

Ah, right. I suppose I should've done it earlier but… fuck I just wanted a break from everything! I'm married now, can I catch a break? PLEASE?

"Right… shall we… go, somewhere? I don't think showing your true form here would be a good thing?"

"We shall go to my temple on Olympus. There we'll have the privacy we need."

"Well, that's good, I guess… Let me go tell my wife where I'm going."

She puts her hand up and stops me, "Not necessary, I've left a note. Now let's be off."

"Wait! Mother we can't just leave a –"

I'm cut off mid-sentence as everything explodes in a blast of white light. After a second it clears up, and I'm back in the main entrance of Mother's temple. The feeling of her presence permeates the air and brings back my memories of when I first came here all those years ago.

It's a little… emotional being back here.

It ends where it starts.

I feel my body, and sure enough I'm back in my regular clothes, Juggernaut snug around me and Oculus and Ram already in my hands.

Ram… the newest addition to my special equipment. I take it in my hands and examine the special helmet. Created with a sacrificed piece of the Golden Fleece, Ram is a golden Corinthian Helmet, light seems to shimmer throughout the metal, as though it were made of solid light.

Like Oculus's ability to see the truth in reality and Juggernaut's ability to keep someone safe from aftereffects of any mystical kind, Ram too has a special power.

Ram allows the user to comprehend any information like a god can. Wearing it, you are completely safe from any manipulations of the mind even from a god. Because it's made from sacred healing energy, Ram too possesses healing capabilities.

All items combined you have an amazingly powerful armor set but used for its true potential… you can see into the true form of a god completely _unharmed._

Never before has a demigod looked into the true form of a god and survived, but that changes today. Three quest years in the making, wrought with sacrifice and death, comes to an end. I've been pushing it off, but now is the time to make good of everything I've lost to get here.

I put Ram on my head and slide Oculus onto my face. Juggernaut is zipped up and I steel my courage. I… don't know if this is going to work.

Mother assured me if any complications happen she'll save me from being obliterated, but it's still the scariest thing I'll ever face in my life. All the monsters of the past; Cacus, Lamia, Laila, the Demon Horse and Kampe, they're nothing to the danger I'm in right now.

Those monsters I can fight. But divinity? Divinity is something only another god can truly fight. Even and elder monster like Kampe must be warry when facing off against the true might of an Olympian.

Mother stands before me, donned in her Olympian Regalia and ready to begin our experiment.

Her eyes soften as she looks at my scared face, "Samson, there's something I must tell you. You are the child of a broken vow, your father impregnated me as nature commands. As it stands, I am no longer a Virgin Goddess. Styx has been against us the entire time since your birth, fate has taken your brothers, _my_ children away. I have… been shamed, and you have been punished. I am truly sorry; my mistakes have been your burden."

"I already knew, mother."

Her eyes widen in disbelief, "How… have you come by this information?" She's desperate to know, even if she doesn't show it. Likely she wants to know as to ensure the knowledge of her broken vow isn't leaked to the public.

I put my hands up to try and keep everything calm, "I learned from father, his spirit came to me in the Sea if Monsters. Hecate blessed me with the meeting, and he told me the truth of my birth. It's… okay, I'm okay. What's happened has happened, nothing to be done now. Let's get this over with, we've lost too much to get here now."

"I loved your brothers, I hope you know that. As a goddess there's only so much I can do to show it, but they were cursed to die from the start. Call me selfish, but I could not become attached, It is cruel to have me suffer through their love. Better to have finite hate then the agony of loving a dying."

It's an awful opinion to have, she should have shown her love for them regardless. But they're gone now, so there's nothing to be done.

She's acknowledged her love for them, which means she remembers them. That's all I could have ever asked for really.

"Are you ready, my son?"

I nod, determination written across my face. She smiles, and her body transforms into the most wonderful thing I've ever seen.

* * *

The wealthy of divine knowledge fades, and I feel my body. I'm- I'm alive! Holy shit it actually worked! Mother's true form, the portal of her divinity, what a wonderful thing! All the sacrifice, all the torment, it _was_ worth it in the end!

I look at mother, practically gushing in excitement as I start describing the amazing beauty of proper divinity, only to pause when I see her face.

She looks completely mortified, face twisted in horror as she looks at me like I'm some horrible monster escaped from Tartarus. The white clouds around Olympus begin to darken, rain and thunder falling from the skies.

"M-mother? What's wrong, what happened?!"

She's still completely frozen. What's going on, what did I do wrong? HAVE I HURT HER?!

I cry out as a loud BOOM from thunder strikes near her temple. Fear claws at my chest as a presence of sheer anger and power begins to draw closer to us.

Terror overtakes me, and I run over to mother, desperately tugging on her arm to try and snap her out of her stupor.

"Mother snap out of it! Something's coming!"

She blinks rapidly and looks down to me, her eyes twinkling as a look of pain crosses her face. She looks towards her entrance and back to me a few times.

We flinch as something loud slams into the heavy doors, causing them to buckle under the strength of whatever is coming for us. The doors hold out, but each of the rapid hits weakens them further and further.

Only a few more and they'll collapse completely!

She reaches a hand down and cups my cheek, looking into my eyes sadly.

"I'm sorry." Her hand reaches down and grabs my throat, her fingers squeezing tightly at the base of my neck.

"Please forgive me."

And, with a sickening crunch, I feel my neck shatter completely. My eyes widen, and mother catches my body as I fall to the ground.

Tears slip down her eyes as she takes my amulet from me. Everything feels… fuzzy, like I'm a pile of dust being sucked into some void.

Mother vanishes as everything goes dark, and my mind fades into nothingness.


	31. Chapter 31

**A/N: Chapter 31 now, and we're back in the future time. Should be fun, we'll learn a bit more about Samson and Athena before picking up where we last left off with Annabeth and her harem. Hope you guys enjoy, we're now officially entering the second half of the story!**

* * *

 _With Athena_

I may have… made a slight miscalculation when I had set my son down this path.

 _It was a mistake, Athena._

Shut up Minerva! Anyways, just a slight miscalculation.

The door to my temple shakes violently as my father, Zeus, continues beating down on it. Thunder rumbles angrily across the skies of Olympus, and no doubt father is accidentally unleashing severe storms all across the world right now.

Ugh, he's so unbelievably bad at keeping his power under control. Though it's far more likely he doesn't care, something I believe his two elder brothers share.

Hades is notorious for shaking California with earthquakes when Demeter visits, but Poseidon is even worse.

I rub my temples, trying to ignore my budding migraine. I swear every couple of months a hurricane beats down on the east coast because that idiot is mad about some stupid thing or another. Petty fool, abusing his station as a god for childish revenge!

 _Remember Ariadne?_

Shut your goddamn mouth!

I look down at the… fruits of my labor and try not to grimace at my actions. The littered remains of his possessions scattered about on the marble floor, the three pieces of his enchanted gear practically radiating with godly energy.

He truly was a special demigod, my most favored of all that have come before him. I scoop up his amulet and stare deeply into the center jewel, looking for the light within.

Inside that magic gem, I see swirling energy, particles of infinity slowly coming together as time continues.

Maybe in half a century I'll be reunited, but for now I must hide everything. The evidence of our actions and quests must stay hidden for a long time.

The being we create together must stay safe, I fear Zeus's wrath would be years of torment and torture. Prometheus was bad, and I fear he would've suffered even worse.

I snap my fingers, and all of his equipment vanish, being sent far away and hidden from prying eyes. In time he'll have to reclaim them, I sense a great change in the future and it's related to these creations.

The stone doors to my temple finally cave and slam down hard onto my tile floor. Ugh, that's going to be such a pain to replace. Proper polished marble is scarce and only a few stonemasons on Olympus can work it the way I like it.

"Hello father, to what to I owe you for this _gracious_ invitation of yours?"

His blue eyes sparkle with lightning as he grits his teeth, "Cut the sass! Where is it, what have you done with the abomination?!"

"I have disposed of him for the time being. I found it fair I should handle it on my own seeing as it was my business. You need not worry, father, I've already taken care of the punishment."

A heavy pressure fills my temple, the aura of an angry King of the Gods.

"Do _not_ presume yourself fit to hand out justice, that is _my_ domain! The boy may be gone, but you will pay for the creation of the abomination. You've been content being my most favored daughter, but you are not immune to responsibility! Your deeds require punishment, now come along. My council shall decide your fate."

I hang my head low and follow father out of my temple. I see he wishes to parade me around, demonstrate a shamed goddess for all to see.

Oh well, I suppose it is only fair. I'm content with this, however, if it means my son shall continue forth unharmed.

It is a mother's duty, after all, to keep her children safe. I may not be able to do much for demigods, but Samson is no longer mortal.

He's something far greater now.

* * *

 _With Annabeth, Spring 2011_

Well… this is a little awkward.

We've been staring at each other for less than a minute, but it's felt like ten chapters by now.

Whom _has_ to be Samson is cradling the strange orb in his hands, and has his body angled in a defensive position.

He clutches a bronze and black cane in his hand, I scan over it and see there's much more to it then meets the eye. In small sections along the length serrated spikes dot the edge, giving it the appearance of a staff with thorns.

Gods, that thing would do some serious damage. Swords make clean cuts, but that cane would simply tear the flesh open.

I think even Will would have a hard time trying to fix a wound from that thing!

With the standoff between us, I use the moment to properly take in my brother's appearance. He's not that tall, probably five and a half feet, and he's definitely Asian in heritage.

Dear Athena, he needs to do something with that hair! Nico has ruffled hair, but Samson's is somehow even worse!

Huh, he almost reminds me of Percy during the Labyrinth crisis. He's kind of thin, even a little girly. Like all demigods his eyes are one of his most defining features.

Most Children of Athena have dark grey eyes, like storm clouds usually. His eyes are much lighter, they look like overcast clouds instead. Light grey eyes only a few shades darker then white, they almost look like they're glowing.

Overall, he's actually kind of pretty. I wouldn't say he's handsome, but more regal looking. He's beautiful like how Apollo is, a gentle beauty. Honestly, if he fixed up his hair he would almost seem like a male version of Athena.

I try and not get angry when I think back to what mom told me in the attic back at camp. Samson is better then me? Psh, as if! I fought two wars for Olympus, done so many impossible tasks and that still isn't enough?!

What's _he_ done anyways?! He doesn't look impressive to me, Percy's more impressive and he looks like a lanky dork!

…Don't tell him I said that.

I huff and let go of my anger, being a bitch isn't exactly a nice thing to be when I'm meeting my brother for the first time. I should give him the benefit of the doubt, he's earned that right.

Based on what I learned looking through his old notes, he's a magical genius. Some of the schematics for those inventions are things even Daedalus would be jealous of.

His eyes peek over each of us, scanning us with a sharp gaze that I've only seen mother use before. Gods, the similarities really are uncanny.

He tilts his head to the side when he sees Percy, "…Lord Poseidon?"

Percy scratches his hair, "Um, not really," He does little finger guns at Samson, "You're _Half_ right though, I'm his son!"

Samson squints his eyes in confusion. Gods I can't blame him, that was a really awful pun. Nico snickers a little and I jab his side with my elbow. He grunts at me and looks away, crossing his arms.

What a drama queen.

"…Right." His tight grip on the cane lightens, and the cane suddenly retracts in on itself, the shaft clicking in until only the handle is left. He loops it onto his belt and turns back to us.

His eyes soften when he sees me, and I feel a twang of remorse in my heart. I've seen that look on dozens of demigods faces before; the look of reuniting with someone you long thought dead.

I give him soft smile, "Hey, my name's Annabeth, Annabeth Chase. These are my friends Percy and Nico, and we're on a quest to save cabin nine."

He steps forward a little. I feel Percy tense, but I hold a hand out to him and he relaxes some.

"I… have a sister?" He wipes the tear from his eye, "Right, of course I do! I'm Samson Akira, now what's this about a quest?"

We grimace slightly, "Yeah, our other friend Leo is a huge idiot."

He groans and rolls his eyes, "Trust me, I know all about idiots. If you grew up with my brothers, you might've gone insane."

* * *

It started getting pretty late after we were all done with our introductions. Just talking to him, I can tell Samson is a man out of his time.

I swear he almost had an aneurysm when I showed him my laptop. I do my best not to bust out laughing, Nico was exactly the same way when he got introduced to the wonders of modern technology.

Too bad he uses it to buy McDonalds whenever he can.

…Oh gods I have to save Samson before it's too late. I refuse to let another demigod get hooked on junk food like Nico!

We were going to camp out in the rundown building here in Medusa's Garden, but my brother told us he has a better place for us to sleep.

He takes us around the edge of the demented garden and points out an old vintage Volkswagen Bus, the kind stereotyped hard with Hippies.

Surprisingly fitting since he grew up in the fifties and sixties. Percy complains about four people sleeping in a cramped space, but Samson grins and shoos him inside and through a little interior curtain.

"OH MY GOD! ANNABETH YOU HAVE TO SEE THIS!"

His voice… just echoed. How the hell can his voice echo?!

I scamper inside and dip through the curtain. I gasp as I make out the impossibly big interior. This place is huge, even bigger then Sally's home!

The living room is big and decorated with super cool memorabilia and expensive looking furnishing. I walk around and look at some of the items laid out for display.

Old looking dinosaur fossils, ancient Greek weapons and armor-the stuff mortals made thousands of years ago, beautiful pottery work so intricate and impressive I _know_ no human or even demigods could've made it.

"Hey Samson!" I call to him from inside, "Where'd this pottery come from?!"

He pushes the curtain aside and walks over and looks at the pottery with me.

"Oh this? I bought it from Rhea actually. I ran into her after I got married and bought some, we thought it would look nice. Plus I kind of owe her for a favor she did for me one time."

"We? Also, I didn't know you were married." I hand him the picture I got from his notes and point out the blonde woman in it, "Is she your wife?"

He rubs the picture lightly with his thumb, small tears start leaking from his eyes.

"Yes, her name is Moroiaca, but she prefers Mori. I've… lost her, she's far away now."

I think back to the times when Percy and I were being pushed away from each other. Zeus offering him godhood, him disappearing and landing in Ogygia, Hera literally stealing him from me. We've been separated before, but we always found our way back to each other.

Hesitantly I pat his back, still unsure how close we actually are even if we're half siblings.

"I'm-I'm sorry for your loss."

He sniffles and wipes his eyes dry, "No, it's okay. I appreciate it though, but let's drop it for now. I've got some food in the fridge, I'll make us dinner and we can talk about this quest of yours tomorrow."

* * *

Holy crap, Samson can cook! Even the Nymph's at camp aren't this good, only a Demeter kid could cook something better then what he made for us.

Percy gobbles down a huge bite of steak and looks at Samson whom flinches slightly when Percy points his fork at him.

"So, got any good stories to tell? Any awesome monsters you've gotten to fight?"

Samson tap his chin and looks away in thought, "There's been a couple cool ones actually. I think one of my favorite's is this legendary Drakon I had slain with my younger brothers. From what Artemis told me, it was a monster mother had fought in the Gigantomachy."

My eyes widen, "Wait, _that_ legendary Drakon?! That's amazing, there's so many stories in our cabin about it! I can't believe you actually fought _and_ killed it!"

"I'm glad we didn't have to fight it during Manhattan," Percy Says, "We already had a… incident with another Drakon during the fight."

He looks away as his face darkens, lost in his thoughts about the previous war. I can tell what he's thinking about; Silena's sacrifice because Clarisse had a hissy fit and was letting demigods die out of spite.

I huff and stab my steak with my fork, stupid Clarisse! Stupid Ares cabin!

And now we're all sitting around a nice dining room table; one girl stabbing her steak pretending it's a person, a Son of Poseidon brooding darkly and looking away, and two very confused demigods surprised by the dreary atmosphere.

Nico coughs into his hand, "Well… So, you said you met Artemis? How'd that go?"

He snorts and shoves a bite of steak in his mouth.

"She was kind of an asshole, but I guess that's to be expected. It was mostly a favor for her actually, you see at that time minor gods were rioting all across America. Zeus order Artemis and the Hunt to abandon monster hunting and pacify the rioting gods. Because of this, monsters were running rampant all across the wilds, so she had me kill the Drakon in return for assistance in killing the giant Cacus."

Percy's head snaps over to him, "You fought Cacus too? Annabeth and I did one time too. He stole Hermes's Caduceus and we killed him to get it back."

"Huh, that's actually pretty impressive. Cacus was hard for me and my brother Steven to fight. He was armored as hell and fought fiercely, not to mention he was over twenty-five tall too. He actually killed two of brothers during the fight, it was… not a happy quest."

I scrunch my eyebrows and think back to when we fought Cacus, "He was only ten feet tall for us. He was fat too, way to heavy to wear armor. Honestly, he didn't really seem like a skilled fighter. Beside his fire, he was actually relatively simple to take down."

He tilts his head to the side, his mouth twitching into a smile, "Heh, that's actually pretty funny. Cacus could change his size with me, so to me it sounds like he really just let himself go! I'm glad to see that killing the clan he ruled caused some serious effects, he totally deserves to live life as a fat ass!"

Nico snorts and we go back to sharing stories. We chatter for hours on end, and the whole time I feel completely elated.

For most of my life I've been the oldest one. The big sister of Cabin Six, the brains of the quests, the one who feels the most responsible for everything. I'm a Child of Athena, I don't make mistakes.

…Only, I still do.

Being around Samson, chatting up with him and bonding with my brother, I feel a weight lift off my shoulders. Here I can be the younger sister again, relax and let my big brother tell jokes that makes me feel like everything is okay.

It feels normal, like we're an ordinary family. No gods or monsters, just people.

But I still have to remember what we are, heroes that fight hard and die young. But just for a minute back there, I didn't have to worry.

 _I miss that feeling._

But that still leaves it up in the air how Samson is here at all, let alone looking like he's only a few years older than us.

I tried getting him to tell us how he's still so young, but every time he freezes up an refuses to tell us. Even if it seems suspicious (which it totally is) he seems far more remorseful about my question then he does shifty.

Perhaps he's been cursed? It seems plausible, some kind of spell that makes him age slower so he has to watch his loved ones pass away without him.

I can't help but compare his situation to a worse version of Nico. At least Nico lost his memories as a child, he didn't have to watch his relatives die of old age. Only… Bianca.

Samson has been around long enough that he's now alone, anyone he knew when he was our age has probably perished a long time ago.

If that comment about his wife is anything to go on, then he's been in isolation for likely longer then I've been alive.

He's an enigma, a mystery. Slowly, over time, I want him to open up to me more. Not out of a selfish need for information to make mom happy, but because I think I legitimately care about him.

Samson's my brother, family; and my family won't let him suffer like this.

Percy and I say our goodnights, and we retire to a room on the second floor Samson is letting us sleep in for the night.

Oh gods, I just hope he doesn't get mad about us fooling around in his bed!

* * *

Morning rolled around, and Samson decided to help us out on our quest by driving us in his van. Percy and Nico are very grateful for that, because that means they get to relax the whole time in the living room and watch old movies while I sit in the front seat with my brother.

Lazy asses.

"So, tell me about this quest you guys are on. What happened to this friend of yours?"

"Funny enough, it relates to something you made a long time ago."

He raises a curious eyebrow, "Huh, how so?"

"Do you remember something called _Oculus?_ Well, my friend found it and I guess he was messing around with it or something, because it somehow cursed the entire Hephaestus cabin with insanity. They're not dying, but we can't heal them either. Chiron and I believe if we have all three of the items you made we can reverse it. That's why we found you actually, I think you can help us save Cabin Nine."

He's quiet for a moment, his eyes hard in thought as he stares out into the road.

"That's… quite curious, actually. Getting the items you're talking about back is very important, many people could be hurt of someone else found them." He points at the amber orb resting on my lap, "That's why I went for that thing there. It's a divination orb, you can have clairvoyant visions with it. Don't worry, getting my stuff back is important to me as well, I'll gladly help you out."

I breath a sigh of relief and look out the window, that's one part of the prophecy completed, now there's the rest of it we have to go through.

"Hey, Annabeth, do you have an idea of where we're heading to next? It seems like you're well informed about my stuff's locations."

"We got help from a new Oracle at camp named Rachel, her prophecy told us that there's two more places we need to go to. The first is the Hesperides Garden, after that we have to go to Polyphemus's island."

He exhales sharply, "Of course, the two places where I made the items. The Fate's are quite funny, bringing it all around in the end where it had begun."

It's quiet upfront again, and I feel a little awkward. He grips the steering wheel tightly and glares out at the road.

Gods I feel like a little kid again! Tiny Annabeth sitting quietly while dad fought with my stepmom in the car. I'm a grown up for gods sake! I fought in two wars, watched people die and killed some as well, I shouldn't be feeling so weird around my brother!

I-I get he's a stranger, but we're still siblings. Demigod siblings are supposed to bond quickly, it's in our blood to have kinship.

I need something to break the mold and get us talking again.

"Soooo, where'd that cool amulet of yours come from? It looks like a pretty special thing."

One of his hands reaches up and grabs it, spinning the metal encased gem with his fingers, "It's one of my first devices I ever made, and It's actually a very special piece of equipment. You know how most demigods can't truly perform magic unless they're related to Hecate in some way?"

I nod, it's a natural fact only Children of Hecate or some other god associated with magic can use the clever craft. Others with magic get it from blessings or deals with a sorcerer god, meaning the power has to be given.

"Well this amulet, something called a Mana Pool, grants demigods the ability to use magic. It is its own source of magic by converting ultraviolet radiation into mana, removing the need for a godly blessing to use magic. I've made several magical items using this amulet, it's one of my most prized possessions."

"W-wow, that's amazing! That-that's _genius_ Samson! The possibilities with that are amazing, a Child of Athena with magic is an incredible duo!"

He smiles at me, "I'm glad you appreciate it. You won't believe how many people thought nothing of the possibilities!"

"Ugh, I can certainly imagine it. Some people are just so blind to the possibilities of things like this!"

"Exactly, they just stick with simple weapons when incredible powers are available to them right now. You won't believe how many Demeter campers I knew who could've become powerful warriors if they just used imagination with their powers!"

We chat away for several hours upfront, two Athena Demigods bonding over the shenanigans of their idiot companions and comparing battle and war theories.

It was actually a pretty nice feeling to bond with my older brother like this. He hasn't told me about how he's lived for so long, but he has been pretty open about telling me how things used to be fifty years ago.

After a few hours we stopped at a gas station for a snack run. The place was grimy, and the greasy attendant kept looking at me grossly, panting like a dog in heat. We ignored him and went on with our shopping.

Samson went off to the bathroom, and I went to buy some hot burritos. I dropped eight of them on the counter (shut up, we're hungry!) and I waited for the cashier to ring them up.

Only the man just kept his eyes locked with mine as he panted, not once making a move to ring up my stuff.

I slowly reach my hand towards the silver dagger at my hip, when the greasy man started talking, almost growling as his words came out, "Smell good, lots of lavender. Grey eyes are good eating, juicy meats and blood. Make a good mate out of ya', a strong litter!"

My eyes widen at his implication and I swing my dagger and go to stab his throat, only he lunged over the counter and tackled me to the ground before I could!

His head begins warping, his teeth becoming sharp as his mouth elongates into a canine's snout. His face gurgles as the flesh shifts around and short black fur grows out.

The new Pitbull head he grew growls and snarls as he starts snapping his jaws at me. I cry out and ram my dagger into his side. He yowls and bites my arm _hard_ and starts yanking it around like a dog playing with his toy.

I swiftly kick him in the groin and throw him off my arm. I clutch my wounded arm as blood leaks out and spills onto the floor.

The dog-man is back on his feet and getting ready to charge me again. With a hiss, I pass the dagger over to my good hand and get ready to react.

Dog-man growls and lunges, only for a shiny bronze whip to wrap around and yank him away mid jump. The Cynocephalus, as I now realize what kind of monster he is, changes targets and latches his jaw onto my brothers arm and starts tugging on him hard.

I quickly throw the dagger and nail the dog right in the small of his back! Samson yanks his arm free and grabs the monsters head and spins it around, the neck snapping under the pressure and causing instant death.

It disintegrates in a pile of golden dust and I go over to try and help my brother. I suddenly stop as I see him clutching his arm like me, but there's a difference between our wounds.

My bite is bleeding red blood. His blood, however, is golden.

My brother, Samson, has the blood of the gods in his veins.


	32. Chapter 32

**A/N: Cats out of the bag, Samson is immortal! But how, you ask? Well, we'll find out this chapter. This should be a fun one, we'll start to explore Samson's relationship with Annabeth and maybe even see the sibling rivalry between them start.**

* * *

 _With Annabeth, Samson_

"Please don't tell anyone!" Are the first words that come out of his mouth as I watch him wrap up his arm, shock written across my face as he stares at me in horror.

He's immortal, as in unending-undying and eternal. You don't just get ichor in your veins easily, only a few things in this world can turn someone immortal like this.

"You're immortal," I say, "We have to tell someone!"

He waves his good arm in the air animatedly, "We can't, if the gods find out I'm dead!"

"Samson!"

"You're my sister, you know I'm right!"

I groan into my hands, gods this is a messed-up situation! If he's acting this way, then that means he became immortal through illegal means.

Which itself translates to the assumption he stole Apple of Immortality from the Hesperides, something Hera despises greatly after Hercules did that when he was still a regular demigod. If someone finds out, she's sure to torture him!

"Oh my gods, I can't believe you did this! Do you know what could happen to you if someone finds out?! I can't believe you're so damn foolish!"

His eyebrows furrow and he glares at me, a glare which I return in full.

"I didn't _choose_ to be this way, okay?! It was literally an accident, an accident that costed me every single thing I held dear!"

I feel fury building up in me, we lost so much during the wars in camp and he's been moping about _his_ loses the entire time?! How many demigods would still be around if we had an immortal at our side?! How many of my friends would still be here if he was more responsible and held himself responsible for his actions?

I stomp over to him and get right in his face, "You don't get to complain about this Samson! You don't _accidentally_ become immortal and hide away from responsibility! _You_ left your people behind, _you_ are at fault for where you're at in life!"

He grits his teeth and turns around and fumes angrily, pacing back and forth as he grumbles angrily to himself.

I roll my eyes and start wrapping up the bite on my arm, angry thoughts ringing about my head as I smile to myself over my little victory.

 _He's_ mothers favorite? As if, he's just some angry kid who can't accept responsibility!

Samson stomps over to me, face pulled into an annoyed expression as he waits for me to finish bandaging my wound.

"What?!" I say with a bit more venom then I meant to. He doesn't say anything but reaches out and touches my forehead with his pointer finger.

Immediately I gasp as memories flow into my brain, I see glimpses of things racing through my mind.

A young boy dying of poison and exhaustion, another passing away from a broken neck; a blonde-haired woman embracing me as I cry, two grey eyed boys with their arms wrapped around my form, whispering words of assurance and comfort into my ear.

I see even more past that; Mom dismissing their deaths, the smiling faces of a group of demigods fighting hordes of monsters, a crazed looking man being stabbed in the chest by a nightmare creature and dying not soon after. I swear I can even feel the ghost of his touch on my cheek as I see the light in his eyes dim and go hollow.

Then Camp flashes before me, a hundred demigods fighting each other in a frenzy as a towering titan rages through the cabins. A red-eyed boy stabbing another through the chest and sobbing as he realizes his actions.

Mother's face appears before me, her gentle smile warming my heart. A motherly feeling I'm completely unfamiliar with, she's rarely smiled at me before.

Her hand reaches to my neck, and the sound of bone cracking ripples through my ear as my sight goes black. An empty void of the mind I see myself trapped in for many years, insanity tugging at the recesses of my mind for what feels like an eternity.

And then, after years of crippling emptiness and loneliness, a light explodes, and I'm staring into the face of an angel.

* * *

 _With Samson, winter 2010_

I've been trapped in the darkness for a long time after mother had… killed me.

Consciousness comes and goes, periods of long thought followed by silence, like a dream invading reality.

I've had such a long time to accept that everyone I knew from Camp is likely dead now, and my dearest mother trapped me in limbo for some reason. It's taken a long time, but I think I'm finally starting to get over it.

Now it doesn't hurt so much to think about things.

Gods, I wonder if I'll ever get out of here? Is this a punishment for some crime I had no idea I committed? Maybe it's torture, let insanity eat my mind before releasing me?

Hmph, I won't give in if that's the case! No way in Hades am I going to let them win!

Suddenly, something silver sparkles in my mind. What-what the hell is that?!

Then the dark void explodes in a vortex of color, sensation returns to me as the deafening silence of limbo is torn away by vivid and beautiful reality.

I collapse onto the ground, the hard-rocky surface a welcome change to the feeling of disembodiment from my previous prison.

Air fills my lungs again, and I cough and hack as the natural workings of my body start up again. I laugh a few times, likely sounding like a maniac as sheer joy overtakes me.

Gods how I missed being physical!

Pushing myself off the ground, I rise on shaky legs and take in my surroundings. It looks like a cave chamber, the only light being a few magical torches embedded in sconces in the walls.

Something clicks at my feet on the floor, and I look down at a shiny jewel on the floor. My eyes are still foggy as usual, so I have to bring the object close to make out its features.

Picking it up, I'm elated to see it's my Mana Amulet, the familiar red gem and aura of sorcery giving me comfort and security. I fasten in back around my neck and further examine my surroundings.

Thankfully I'm still wearing clothes, my old Camp shirt and jeans, but I still can't see anything without my glasses.

I touch my amulet and focus on a spell Daisy taught me, a pair of eye glasses then pop into existence in front of me. I snatch them from the air and put them on, my vision become clear immediately.

What a useful spell, summoning simple objects through the use of magic. It's a specialty of Daisy's, but she taught me the basics of it.

Something small like this is usually exhausting to summon, but it was actually incredibly easy this time. Hell, I felt no tug on my mana at all, it was effortless practically.

I look at my arm, my tattoo is still there, but it feels off somehow. Panic rises in my chest when I try and fail to summon _Luminous_.

My bow, it's gone!

I feel around my body, everything of mine is gone! My cutlass ring, Joseph's cane and my silver dagger are nowhere to be found.

As I scan about the room, I make out a form rising from the darkness. The person groans and clutches at their head, pulling themselves up on shaking legs.

They turn to me, and I find myself lost in those familiar emerald eyes.

Mori emerges from the shadows and approaches me carefully, her face filled with disbelief.

"S-Samson, is that you?"

I take a few steps forward, and then several more until I bring Mori into my arms and hold onto her tight, hot tears streaming down my cheeks as she wraps her arms around me.

She cries manically into my shoulder, her emotions overwhelming my powers but I ignore the discomfort and keep her in a tight grip.

We lost each other once, it won't happen again!

Mori sniffles like crazy, but recollects herself and parts from me slightly. Her eyes are red and puffy from crying, and her entire outfit looks disheveled and torn.

Her hair is wild and pulled into a loose ponytail, a far cry from the fancy styles she usually prides herself on. The once expensive black trench coat of hers is torn and dirtied, like it's been attacked by a horde of angry cats or something.

I look down at her hands and see they're covered in scars, thin lines zig-zag across them and continue down and disappear under her sleeves.

My grip tightens ever so slightly on her hands, "Mori, _who_ did this to you?"

She shakes her head and smiles widely, and I feel a little unnerved by it. On the one hand she looks like Mori, but on the other hand she feels off, like a strange bizarro copy of her.

"That doesn't matter anymore, you're _finally_ back!" She giggles crazily, "I-I followed your voice, and you led me straight to your prison. I went for your amulet, but it blew me away with magic! I see now what happened, you were imprisoned by that _harlot_ in your amulet! Not to worry, our vengeance is at hand, those foolish gods in their iron thrones will soon topple over! But no, NO! We've lost our allies, not for long! Together we shall gather the titans and resurrect the giants! With their combined might the gods of Olympus shall be overwhelmed, Typhon will claw free of the pit and a new Golden Age will arise!"

Okay, that's seem like a _pretty_ big problem.

One, replacing the Olympians with the Titans/Giants sounds like an unbelievably awful thing. Two, Typhon returning from wherever the hell he's imprisoned at is self-explanatory enough, he will _**literally**_ **end the world.**

And then there's three, MORI'S GONE FUCKING INSANE.

"MORI! Dude, everything you just said was actually the craziest shit I've ever heard, _Thomas_ makes more logical sense then that! Also, what do you mean 'followed my voice'? I've been trapped in a coma or something for like-EVER."

I gently hold her hands and brush her knuckles with my thumb, "I-I don't know what happened to you since we last saw each other, but I _promise_ we'll make this right! I'll-I'll find help, Dionysus or someone can take away the voice in your head. We'll fix you up again, make you-YOU."

She looks down, her hair covering her eyes and preventing me from seeing her expression. Her body begins convulsing as she is overtaken by sobs. I hold her close, gently caressing her back.

Suddenly her sobs turn into manic laughs, and before I know it I'm blasted away by a powerful burst of pure magic.

I don't know what happened to the world, because everything spins like crazy and freaking _hurts._ The spinning stops, and with a heavy groan I pull myself out of a big crater I landed it. Wait… a big crater I _caused._

Adjusting my glasses, I see I was blown out of the cave and blasted into some tundra somewhere. Cold air nips at my skin, and I use my magic and create a heat shield around me.

It's an adjusted version of the spell I saw Circe use back on her island, a second layer of almost indestructible magic skin that lasts as long as you have a source of mana.

Over the years I managed to learn the spell, or something similar at least. Combine the Magic Armor spell with another spell for warmth and tada, you've got magic to replace a winter jacket.

With a groan I pull myself from the crater, silver-ish aura occasionally flickering over my skin as I stand up in the wintery wonderland I find myself in.

I look over the distance and see smoke spilling out from the side of a large foothill several football field lengths away.

 **Holy**. **Shit**. Did she blast me through the earth and _then_ send me this far away?! How did I even survive, when did she get that strong?!

I cough up blood in my hand and freeze when I see the color. _It's golden, the color of immortals and gods._

Did…my equipment cause this, did looking into the true form of a god turn me into one?! Oh fuck, oh fuck me silly I am so SCREWED. If Zeus finds out he'll lock me in Tartarus; _all_ Olympians have to vote to make a god, it's super illegal to do so without the consent of everyone!

I start hyperventilating as thoughts of torture from Zeus race through my mind, but a shrill feeling across the air halts anymore morbid thoughts.

The smoke on the mountain changes direction and spirals towards me, when it's only a hundred feet away it disperses as a person slowly hovers down to the ground across from me.

Mori pants and grins at me, golden blood leaking from her nose as her eyes are dilated in a look of complete madness.

I'm even more shocked to see her blood, that's ichor too! How in the world did she…

Oh Mori, you didn't!

"I ate the apple! The power from it and Acheron flows in my veins, tools of my vengeance! I spent years in loneliness, and when I first heard the voice it told me to _destroy_ the gods and avenge you, even now he whispers at my mind. And you know what?! That voice is Samson, which makes you an _**imposter!**_ _"_

She launches at me like a viper, her silver cutlass burning red flames as it slams into my defensive spell over and over, all I can do is try and parry as best I can. I have no weapons to defend myself!

"You're a fake!" I duck under a swing and lash out with a kick to her middle. She launches hundreds of magic arrows, and I conjure a wall of magic light in response. They all shatter on impact, but she launches herself through the wall and I'm back to dodging her wild swings.

" _She_ made you, didn't she?! To taunt me one final time, to make me suffer by seeing a false copy!"

I break her guard and snake around and hold her in a full body strangle hold.

"You're crazy dude! I'm the real Samson, that voice is just in your head!" She breaks my hold and spins around and kicks my stomach, sending me flying several dozen feet back.

I roll through several patches of snow before stopping my roll and spinning back to my feet just in time to duck under a waft of her signature blue fire. I summon an astral spear and deflect her coming flurry of sword slashes.

She goes for an overhead swing, and I catch it with the handle of my magic spear and lock us in a stalemate.

We both grunt as we push against each other, the ground underneath us cracking from the sheer strength Mori is exuding. Fuck, she must've gotten a power boost from becoming immortal _and_ dipping into the river Acheron!

"Like my strength?! It's a gift from the river Acheron, the gift of a godly body! Regeneration and strength, the rewards of Tartarus!"

Something shines on her belt. My eyes widen when I see what it is, Joseph's cane! Okay, how am I going to get it from her? Athena give me strength, I have to take a hit, don't I?

My spear breaks, and her cutlass smashes right into my shoulder, my magic practically screaming as it almost shatters from the blow.

Groaning from the hit, I reach into her belt and snag the cane before throwing a hard punch into Mori's jaw, the punch throwing her away in a high arc and into a big pile of snow.

I blink a few times and look at my fist. Did-did I do _that?_

She stands up from the snow, her jaw bent at a sick angle. I almost hurl as the bone's creaks and shift, setting themselves back into the right positions. She spits out a glob of golden blood and rubs her jaw, opening and closing it a few times.

"Haven't been hit like that in a while." She looks back to me, her eyes narrowed dangerously, "You'll pay for that, bitch!"

Like a panther she races at me, her sword like a flurry around me. With Joseph's cane in my hand, I unveil its extended form and hold my own, responding to her attacks with my own parries and counter strikes.

We continue back and forth for several minutes, neither of us getting the edge over the other. Gods, she's vastly improved her swordplay since last time! She's just as good as I am now, but there's one person who can help us that I _know_ is better than both of us combined.

My body tingles and stings as it changes, shifting control from Samson to me.

I lash out a nasty kick to Mori's neck and send her reeling back. She manages to keep her footing, and her eyes widen when she sees me.

"Abigail!? How are you here, another illusion from _her?!"_ She grits her teeth angrily, her pale knuckles going even whiter as she grips her cutlass, "You'll pay for pretending to be her you **fake**!"

Like a woman possessed she charges at me one more time, only to be pushed on the defensive as I meet her blows with a hail-fire of my own.

She brings her sword to the left, I dance away and rake across her chest. She stabs at my middle, I catch it under my arm and drive the tip of my cane into her forehead.

Mori cries out and clutches her head, ichor oozing through her fingers as she glares at me. She raises a hand, a powerful spell charging to destroy me.

Quick like a cheetah, I press the button on my cane and turn it into a whip and slash it out at her hand, the serrated edges wrapping around it tightly.

She _screams_ in fury as I yank back hard and sever her hand entirely. Mori stumbles back, clutching angrily at her stump as ichor gushes out like a water fountain.

I crinkle my nose at the smell but steel my stoicism and snap the whip threateningly.

"Give up Mori, you've lost. I'm the superior swordswoman, you _can't_ beat me."

I hold my hand out to her, a final invitation of peace between us.

"Please, no more fighting."

She hisses in pain through her teeth, and glares at me in response. She bashes her sword hand against the ground and disappears in an explosion of blue fire.

I hang my head in shame, the feeling of failure and loss eating at my soul. The woman I love has been poisoned, insanity controls her mind.

Mori's gone crazy, and I don't know if i can save her.

* * *

 _With Annabeth, Spring 2011_

I gasp as the memory fades away, my feet giving out and I tumble to the floor. Thankfully, Samson catches me and sets me down gently.

My head aches like crazy, and I gently massage it as Samson sits down next to me on the floor. I look at him from the corner of my eye, it's easy to tell he's in pain. Nothing physical mind you, this is the pain of a man who's wife has gone crazy.

"…I'm…sorry." My voice is meek, even a little weak, "I shouldn't have said those things. I was just… jealous, mother told me some hurtful things and I took it out on you."

He's quiet, still looking up at the ceiling. I scooch over closer to him and wrap an arm around his shoulders. It always comforts me when Percy does that, so maybe it will help with him too?

I'm proven right, he shimmies a little and rests his head on my shoulder. I'm glad it's just us, Percy would freak if he saw us right now.

Oh well, he's my brother and he needs comfort. We're family, we have to look out for each other, no one else will.

"No, it's fine. I get your frustrations, I felt the same way with mother. She's a demanding goddess, no room for failures."

"Yeah, she really is, isn't she? I saw a lot of your memories, of… your brothers, and Mori. Don't worry, we'll find her; and when we do, we'll fix her up again, even if we have to tie her to the flag pole and let Mr. D heal her mind."

He chuckles lightly, and I can't help but smile. It always made me happy to see my siblings smile when I cheer them up, makes me feel like someone they can count on.

"I'm looking forward to it, but for now we've got to finish up your quest. We can… worry about Mori later, your quest is priority for now."

"We'll be done soon, or at least I hope we will. The monster population has gone down a bunch after the wars, so hopefully there's no secret monster society or something hunting us. Gods knowing this will hopefully be a simple errand run to a couple places."

"Pfft, last time I thought that my girlfriend got kidnapped by a coven of lamia. Honestly, by this point I'm used to shit hitting the fan pretty much right off the bat. What state are we in, by the way?"

"We're in central Indiana I think, our goal is San Francisco, so we've got a couple days drive if things go easy for us."

He lifts his head off my shoulder and reaches in his pocket, he pulls out a bag of ambrosia and hands it to me. I pop a little bite in my mouth, the healing magic already working wonders on the bite on my arm.

"I'm going to stop at a few places along the way, there's some things I have to recover. Don't worry, it's on the way. The most important place is this junkyard in Arizona, I found out that's where my bow is it."

Junkyard? Arizona? Oh fuck, is that… where Bianca died?

Gods, Nico's going to freak if we're going where I think we're going. This whole quest seems to be taking us back to places we've already been, so I guess it's fitting since Percy's been there before.

"If that junkyard is what I think it is, then we'll have to be very careful there. It's a cursed place, Nico's sister even died there years ago. I-I don't think he's really over it, so _please_ be gentle, okay?"

His face twists into a grimace, "Fuck, I-I didn't know." He runs his hands through his hair, "Gods, taking a Child of Hades to the place his sister died is asking for trouble!"

I nod and rub his back, "Don't worry, I'll break the news to him."

The door jingles, and our heads snap over and see Nico walking in the store nervously. He looks at the mess around the store and back to us.

"The Hades did you guys do?"

"Got attacked by a dog man, tore our arms up." Samson points at the burritos on the counter, "We got free food, though."

Nico walks over and grabs a couple and hides them in his oversized coat pocket. He looks around nervously before he kneels down by us.

"Hey, Samson? How accurate are the visions you get from that orb thing in your front seat?"

"One hundred percent, those orbs are oracles by themselves. Anything you see in them is the truth, clairvoyance is one of their primary powers."

Samson stands up and heads over to the drink section, "I'm going to get some soda, I'll be back in the van in a minute."

He disappears around the corner, and I turn back to Nico, worry filling up in me as I watch his nervous body language.

"Nico, are you okay? Did you see something in that orb?"

He rubs his face, eyes wide in disbelief and fear, "Annabeth, I saw Bianca."


	33. Chapter 33

**A/N: Soooo… lots of fun stuff was setup last chapter. Mori's gone absolutely crazy, Samson's an illegal immortal, and Nico's having visions of Bianca. Now we can only focus on a few easier things at first, so we'll get some interesting info about the Bianca situation and hey, even a visit from our favorite snake bitch.**

* * *

 _With Annabeth, spring 2011_

About four hours ago, Samson told me he expected shit to hit the fan immediately. Now I'm inclined to agree, because Nico looked into Samson's prophecy Orb and had a vision of Bianca.

This should be a good thing, but Nico's been acting nuts ever since. He's distracted and anxious, a deadly combination for demigods. One incidental slip-up could mean death, and his chances of making one increase more and more as he continues worry about this… situation.

Damn that stupid Orb!

We crossed the border of Indiana a while ago and made our way deep into southern Illinois. The first stop Samson is taking us to is the home of some witch he knew a while ago, she lives in the outskirts of some tiny town in the middle of nowhere.

Man, he's making good use of his Orb, he found out where she lived with it.

Though he was fairly nervous to go to her, according to him she's very dangerous. Oh well, we've got three demigods and an immortal wizard, that witch _literally_ won't stand a chance.

He also took the silver dagger from me, apparently it was a gift to him from Artemis a long time ago. I protested at first but gladly handed it over when he told me that it belonged to some crazy ex-Hunter that had a fetish for murdering men.

Gross.

It's around midday when we followed a small offshoot path from the road and pulled into the driveway of an old looking colonial house.

Chipped paint, cracked windows and random garbage littered about the property. Combine that with dark shadows and tall trees, and you've got all the markings of the home of a witch.

He puts the van in park and huffs nervously in his seat, "Phew, all right, this is fine." He looks at me, and I raise an eyebrow as he smiles at me cheekily, "Wanna get out first?"

I roll my eyes and open my door and slide out. Percy peeks his head from the curtains and follows me out, Nico right behind him.

"What are we doing here, is this really a necessary stop?"

"Trust me, it is. Witches like her always have an ear to the ground, if somethings after us she'll know. Though I will admit, I'm also here for selfish reasons too. There's some info I need from her."

Nico groans and plays with his skull ring on his finger, "Whatever, let's just get this over with. The air here isn't natural, this is the den of something powerful."

Samson rolls his eyes, "And bitchy too," He walks up the steps and bangs loudly on the door, "Laila, open up! I've gotta talk with you!"

We stand on the deck and wait as something glass shatters inside followed by a loud curse. Samson chuckles lightly and taps his fingers on the handle of his dagger.

Light feet tap over to the door and open it to reveal a bleary-eyed woman rubbing her eyes.

She seems _remarkably_ familiar. I squint at her and think back, when suddenly it clicks why I recognize her so well.

She looks just like Circe.

Long dark hair, tanned skin and a body like a Child of Aphrodite. Then there's her eyes, they're nigh identical to Circe's.

Her state of dress sets her apart from Circe, in place of a curve hugging dress is baggy sweatpants and an oversized _Black Sabbath_ band shirt.

"What-what the fuck do you twats want now?!" She says angrily and glares at us, but her face quickly twists into shock when she sees Samson.

In the blink of an eye she's slamming the door shut, the wood clicking crazily as she activates what must be at least half a dozen locks.

Samson pounds on the door again, "Dammit Laila! Dude, I'm not here to hurt you, I just want to talk!"

"Hah! Bullshit, asshole," A muffled voice calls out from inside, "Get out of here before I call the cops!"

"Laila, you don't have a phone!"

"…Fuck you!"

He growls, and I push him out of the way and kick the door with all my might. It doesn't budge fully, so I give it a couple harder kicks and the door goes flying off its hinges.

I step over the fractured door and head further inside. I look about the room, a dusty old kitchen with severely outdated appliances. I crinkle my nose at the smell, the bite of fermented grapes.

This lady must be a wine-alcoholic or something.

Percy peeks his head around the corner, "Jesus, Annabeth, that was her door."

"Whatever, she was holding us up. A couple Drachma's and everything will be fine."

Nico smirks, "Look at you, paying people off. I thought that was Piper's area."

"…Nico shut up."

Samson walks in the kitchen with me and crinkles his nose, guess I'm not the only one.

"Alright, she's in here somewhere. Remember, we need her ali-"

He's suddenly cut off by a cast-iron pan expertly slamming straight into his forehead, the metal gonging loudly on impact.

"FUCK!" He screams, stumbling backwards and slamming into the fridge.

We look over, and in the doorway further in Laila is laughing hysterically and pointing at Samson. I growl angrily, and the witch freezes and looks at me like a deer in headlights. She shrieks and spins around and tails it deeper inside the house.

"GET BACK HERE!" I yell and chase after her, ignoring Percy's cry for me to stop. I'm not letting this witch get away, no one hurts my brother's and lives!

Laila barrels down her hallway, knocking dressers and book cases over to try and halt my progress. I hurtle over and under them with grace like a cheetah and wind up in a large living room.

Glass shatters, and my head snaps over and sees her trying to pull herself through a broken window.

Fuck no!

I race over and grab her legs and tug hard, pulling her from the window and slamming her down on the floor. She cries out as a large shard of glass cuts into her side, but I ignore her pain and pull her arm behind her back and apply pressure.

Curses fly from her mouth as I hold her down, she writhes and struggles fiercely, blood spilling out everywhere and staining our clothes red.

Godsdammit, blood stains are a pain to get out of camp shirts!

I grab her hair and yank her head up, "Stop struggling and comply! We just want information!"

Her body stills for a second before relaxing, "F-fine, I give up! I'll tell you what you want, just let me be!"

Something in her words sparkles in my mind, like a ghostly hand is reaching into my brain and controlling my body.

Surely she's trustworthy, right?

I loosen my grip slightly, and suddenly her head jerks up and bashes me in my nose. I feel it crunch, as streams of blood slip out of my nostrils.

She turns around and punches me square in the chest, the air exploding out on impact like a cannon and launches me back and straight through the broken window, taking a good chunk of the wall with me.

I tumble across the dirt for a dozen feet or so before my momentum finally stops, leaving me lying in a dazed pain as a goat walks over and starts munching on my hair.

Okay, so let's go over the list. Powerful charmspeaker? Check. Incredible natural strength? Check. Enough magic power to punch me through a window and a dozen feet back after that? Check and check.

The goat scurries away as I get back to my feet. I scrape some of the glass embedded in my legs away and groan as I crack my aching back.

I turn back around to the house, just in time to duck under a big piano flying through the hole I made. Crashing and indeterminate yelling echo from inside the house, glass shatter and occasionally random things go flying out the windows.

"Fucking cat!" A gangly looking feline yowls angrily as it's launched from a window and into a bush. I burrs at me as it pops up from the bush and disappears back around the house.

I roll my eyes as I hear Percy yell something before being cutoff by the sound of something slamming into his gut. Quickly I make my way back inside the hole and duck again as this time Nico goes sailing over my head, screaming frantically as he tumbles down a small hill and disappears into a ditch.

My eyes widen as I turn back to the scuffle in the living room. Laila's lower-half has been changed into a long serpent's, easily twenty feet long that's wrapped around Percy and swinging him around.

He slams into the walls, floor and ceiling as he kicks his legs wildly, screaming like a kid on a roller coaster.

Samson chokes violently, face red as Laila grapples him from behind and chokes his throat with the crook of her arm while the other holds him snug against her body. She grunts and groans, likely holding Samson in the lock she's got him in is taking all of her strength and then some.

I unsheathe my trusty drakon bone sword and charge Laila, cutting long gashes across sections of her tail, hopefully the blood loss from them will weaken her and let us capture her!

Guttural hisses, somewhere between a snake and an alligator, escape her lips as her slit, snakelike eyes glare at me.

I glare back at her and stab deep into her tail, she _screams,_ and Percy and Samson are released as she lunges right at me!

Samson throws his hand out, and shimmering see-through chains form in the air and wrap around Laila, entangling her thoroughly as another spell of his forces her to transform back into a human.

Laila groans and cries out as she slams into the wall beside me, struggling against the bindings only for them to respond by becoming even tighter. Sensing the constricting chains, she huffs one final time and relaxes, the tension in her body practically melting as she shimmies her body into a sitting position on the floor.

Nico groans as he pulls himself in through the hole in the wall, Percy raises his eyebrow at him as he takes in the numerous scratches all over Nico's face.

"Nico, what the heck happened to you? You look like you tried to fight a raccoon!"

"Not a raccoon, but there was this really mean cat out there." His eyes widen as we all look at him, doing our best not to giggle, "No, I mean this thing was _diseased_ or something! It was ugly and had no hair!"

"Hey!" Laila cries out from the floor, "Leave Mr. Norrington alone, he's a Sphynx Cat! They're supposed to look like that!"

Percy full-on starts laughing, and Nico hides his smile behind his sleeve. I smile and rolls my eyes and walk over to Samson, feeling at his forehead where the pan had hit him.

"You okay? Damn, she got you good."

"You know I did!"

He winces as I pat at the bump on his head, "I'm fine, but could you stop poking at it?! Gods that hurts!"

I turn around and go over to Percy, he smiles goofily and gives me a thumbs up, "Don't worry about me Wise-Girl! She threw me around a bunch but I'm good!"

We look back at Nico and he holds a hand out at us, "I'm cool too, just stinging from the damn cat claws."

Then we turn back to Laila, who shrinks under our combined glares, "Um… I surrender?"

* * *

"Look, I don't much, okay? All I could scrounge up is that the psycho you call a wife is working with a lamia to kill you, Samson. She's throwing some serious money around hiring monster mercenaries, tons of goons that are hunting for you and apparently causing some trouble in the black-market. Even the Shadow Company is under pressure from her operations; warehouse raids and bombings. It's gang warfare practically!"

Samson holds his chin with his hand as we listen to Laila's story, the revelation of some serious goings-on in the world just a hair above disturbing. We asked about this 'shadow company', but she only knows that it exists, and seems to be extremely powerful.

I suppose it's a stroke of luck then that Samson's wife is destroying their assets in some underground war. Bloody competition, both sides seem opposed to the gods but want the other out of the way.

"Names, locations, is there anything you can give me that leads back to Mori?"

"I've been out of the game since you destroyed us back in Florida half a century ago, you created a power vacuum and nasty things filled in the gaps. I came back only a couple decades ago, I just want some peace and quiet for a while! If you're really smart you'd go to my mother some help, she's been on a quest to save as many children of hers as she can. Want to save Mori? Then you go to Hecate."

He groans loudly into his hands, and I rub his back soothingly, "Well, I guess that's it then? Come on guys, we shouldn't stick around here for too long."

"What about me, you can't leave me locked up like this?"

I look at Samson, and he draws his thumb across his neck. I pull out m sword and go to stab her, when suddenly a woman's voice calls to us from behind.

"I wouldn't do that, honey, she's currently employed to my master."

My eyes widen as my breath hitches, I _know_ that voice anywhere. We turn around, and facing us is a nasty looking middle-aged woman in a business suit. She glares at us like we're filth, her hateful eyes boring into us as she makes out the mess we made in the living room.

Percy glares at her, hand already in his pocket, "Mrs. Dodds, long time no see."

"A long time, but not nearly enough. I've been sent by my master to ensure our project is continuing unhindered and delivering a request to the Son of Athena here."

She gestures to hole in the wall with her head, "Out. NOW. I have business with the sorcerers here."

I keep my mouth shut and hop outside with Nico and Percy by my side.

"Nico, do you know what this is about? Why's a kindly one here?"

"I don't know Percy; my father hasn't contacted me for months now. It's possible we accidentally stumbled on some meeting, but that doesn't explain why he's suddenly interested in your brother, Annabeth."

"I think I know why," I say, sighing as I have to reveal Samson's secret, "He's immortal, like golden blood immortal. I think Hades is calling in some favor from him, probably something to blackmail him and force him to do some personal quest or something. Hades is a particular god, it's likely extortion. Whatever happens, _do not_ tell anybody, he's committed a crime becoming immortal, he could be in serious danger if an Olympian found out."

Percy and Nico look at me in shock, the revelation of his immortality certainly being something they weren't expecting. I feel pretty bad, but they have a right to know; I won't _ever_ lie to them and make up some cover story. Besides, I trust them to keep this a secret for as long as possible.

"Don't worry, we'll keep it secret."

"He's a good guy, no worries from me. I'm just concerned about what my father has planned for him, Hades doesn't request light favors from people."

Dear Athena is that putting it lightly, Hades doesn't do things simple.

We hear grunting, and turn around as Samson drops to the ground, a large black box in his arms. His gaze is distant and disturbed, he must've had a rough time with Alecto in there.

"Samson, everything okay?"

"I wouldn't… say that, but it's not exactly awful either. Someone get the door to my van, we have to keep this with us for the time being." He motions to the black box in his arms, "And don't _ever_ try and open this, you'll probably be cursed to the Fields of Punishment for a thousand years if you do."

Well that's… grim.

We walk back to the van, and Samson disappears through the drapes and into his house. I go to close the door once everyone clambers in, when a hand catches it and prevents me.

Laila frowns angrily and pulls herself into the van and vanishes through the drapes. I quickly follow after her.

"What the _hell_ do you think you're doing?"

"I'm being _forced_ to move into this… _nice home!"_ She hisses, "I have no choice, I have to work with that bastard! Hecate's-sake, of _course_ I needed help, but why does it have to be _**him?!**_ "

She walks away with a luggage in her hand, yelling angrily to herself about unfairness and other bitter things.

I raise an eyebrow at her, but let it slide as she vanishes down a hallway and into a room far away from us.

"Percy, Nico, make sure everything's okay, I'm going to go and see if I can get any more information from Samson."

They nod, and head over to Laila's room. I walk up the stairs to the second floor and head over to the privacy room Samson had showed me a couple days ago.

I knock on the door and hear a quiet 'come in'. I head inside and walk over to the black box on the table Samson is leaning over.

Taking a better look, I realize that the large black box Samson was carrying is actually a small coffin, barely five-foot long if I were to guess.

I reach out and touch the material but reel back with a hiss as my finger touches the metal. My whole hand stings for a moment, and I realize what this coffin is made of.

Stygian Iron.

"Samson, can you tell me anything about what happened in there? Why is Hades interested in you?"

He sighs and reaches out to the coffin, lifting it open and unveiling the object contained within.

My hands come to my mouth, barely covering my gasp as I see what's contained within, the cold and lifeless body of a young girl.

* * *

"So, got any siblings?"

"I had a couple dozen, but they haven't reformed yet. As far as I know, mother, Daisy and I are the only lamia in existence right now."

Nico's been pestering Laila on the couch with me for the past thirty minutes now. We crossed over the Oklahoma border only a couple minutes ago, making it day three on our travels to the Hesperides Garden.

I've been keeping the contents of Samson and Laila's deal a secret since yesterday, and it's been a horrible feeling the entire time. I desperately want to climb to the highest building in the world and yell out, so everyone can know, but for my brother's sake I'm keeping my mouth shut.

Laila cleaned herself up well after our little scuffle, switching her shirt and sweats out for black leggings and a pretty floral sundress.

Her outfit being a total contrast to her attitude since she's been a major bitch the entire time she's been squatting around my brother's home.

An alarm goes off on her watch, and she grunts at it, "That's my cue, so I'll be off. Don't bother me with anything, my work's far more important than any little _predicament_ you halflings are sure to find yourself in."

She gets up off the couch and heads upstairs to the privacy room, calling out to me over her shoulder, "Oh, and Annabeth dear? Work on your wardrobe, that _boytoy_ of yours is heading for the door soon if you don't show some skin. The prude you pride yourself as being won't keep him around."

I grit my teeth as she laughs and disappears into the privacy room. Nico puts his hand on my shoulder to try and calm me down, "Ignore her, she's just trying to get under your skin."

Fuck, it sure as hell is working!

"Do you… do you think she's right?"

"About what?"

"You know… _more skin?"_

Nico looks at me dumbly for a few moments, "Annabeth, Percy's a big dummy. If you're desperate, then just flash him and he'll probably throw himself to your feet in servitude."

Percy's head pops through the drapes, "Wait, who's flashing me?!"

Nico stands up challengingly, "I am!"

Percy scowls and disappears back through the drapes. Nico and I snicker for a second until we're full on laughing.

"Never change, Nico, never change."

He snorts, "Wasn't planning on it, I'm already the most awesome person in the world!"

I roll my eyes and sit back down on the couch, the soft leather practically absorbing me into it.

"So, the Hesperides Garden, huh? Sounds like, from the prophecy, the thing we need is buried under the tree."

I grimace, gods that's going to be a difficult task to complete if we have to dig under Ladon.

"Correct, the prophecy implies that they're buried under two 'golden trees', and since this quest has been taking us to places we've already been, that narrows it down to two places; The Hesperides Garden, and the tree the Golden Fleece hung from on Polyphemus's island."

Now he grimaces with me, "Yikes, both of them being guarded by ferocious things we can only _hope_ to fight."

"Yup." I say, popping my p. I look at him from the corner of my eye, worry settling in my heart, "Nico, you know where we're going before the Hesperides, the junkyard…"

His eyes soften, as a morose look creeps up on his face, "Yeah, I know. It's okay, I'm over it now. Besides, I need to… confirm something while I'm there."

"…Is it related to the vision you had in the Orb?"

He looks away in thought, "…I saw her, Annabeth, clear as day. She looked like how I saw her last, elegant as she fights some mystery monster with ferocity."

Then he's looking at me, a hard expression on his face, "She's out there, in some way and some form. Maybe not in the world, or even in the present, but I know _Bianca_ exists out there. Not some reincarnation using her soul for power, the _actual_ Bianca."

His eyes soften again, and he leans his head against my shoulder, "I just want it to be true, even if the vision likely isn't anything."

I sigh, and bring my hand up and scratch his hair, "Nico, you need to be careful. Visions make people go mad, they lose themselves in it and wind up dead. I want it to be true, but we have to take things one step at a time."

"I know, but don't worry about me. I'm focused, back in the game. No monster's going to get the drop on me, I promise."

I smile fondly at him, It's been amazing watching Nico grow up, like he's my little brother or something. Oh who am I kidding? He's totally my little kid brother!

"Hey, Annabeth? You might want to come out and see this!" Percy calls out from the front of the van, and I quickly get off the couch and race through the drapes. A pit forms in my stomach as I make out the sight ahead of me.

Blocking the road ahead of us is a literal _army,_ hundreds of Cynocephali block our path, medieval looking siege equipment pointed at us while ugly looking laistrygonians smash clubs into their hands threateningly.

"So," Says Samson, "Think I can blast through the barricade?"


	34. Chapter 34

**A/N: Another day, another new chapter. And now we have the mystery of the box; what's in it? We already know that, but who and why? Put on your thinking caps because we won't learn for a good while.**

* * *

 _ **Henosis**_ _is the classical Greek word for mystical "oneness", "union" or "unity."_ _Thus the process of unification, of "The Being" and "The One," is called henosis, the culmination of which is_ _ **deification**_

 _With Annabeth, spring 2011_

"Samson, turn us around."

"On it. Percy, open my glove box and hand out what's inside of it."

Samson changes gears, and we jolt as his Van starts reversing quickly. The army in front of us shouts in rage and starts charging, and to my surprise they're actually keeping up with us fairly well.

A ballista bolt ricochets off the ground next to us, and Samson curses and swerves to avoid other projectiles.

Percy digs around in the glove compartment and pulls out a pair of handguns, shock written on his face, "Holy shit! Dude why do you have guns?!"

"I'm a concerned individual, now quit gawking and use them!"

Samson does a Need for Speed maneuver and spins the van around while keeping our momentum so we're facing the road away from the roaring armada. He shifts gears ala Paul Walker style and we slowly accelerate down the road.

"Can't this thing go any faster!? They're right behind us!"

"Hey! It's a freaking Van, I can't accelerate like a damn Trans Am!" Gunfire explodes behind us, and bullets start beating against the metal doors on the van, "Dammit they're fucking shooting my van! Percy, stop being a bitch and shoot back!"

Seaweed Brain glares at Samson and pokes his head out the window and starts firing wildly, each of his shots missing anything by a couple miles it seems. I even think he hit a hawk way up in the sky.

I pull him from his seat and take the gun, looks like Percy's so bad with projectiles even point and click is too much to ask from him.

"Samson, how many clips do we have?!"

He swerves around another ballista bolt, "It's enchanted, the bullets come back slowly. Switch between the guns when one runs out!"

I hang out the window slightly and aim down the sights of the handgun. I line up with a giant, the gun kicks back and voila, a dead giant.

The Cynocephali bark angrily like a horde of vicious dogs and barrel after the van even quicker, their heritage as dog-hybrids allowing them to keep up with a moving vehicle very well.

They wave torches and various other weapons, and I quickly ducks back inside the van as a couple shoot back at me with hunting rifles.

"DUDES!" Samson screams out the window, "STOP SHOTING MY BLOODY VAN!"

I wait for the rifles to stop firing before I poke my head out again and return with my own bullets, nailing a couple hybrids and scoring a lucky shot on a giant that falls over and crushes a handful of smaller monsters before it turns to dust.

Nico pops his head through the curtain as I switch the 9mm out for a heavy Colt pistol, "Uhhh, what's up guys?"

He shrieks as I fire off the entire clip of the Colt, the loud explosions causing him to flinch and slink back inside Samson's home in the back, "Alright, I'll let you guys handle this!"

Percy and Samson's eyes widen as they look out at the road far ahead of us, "Uh-oh."

I look out with them, and I understand their worries. _Another_ army is waiting for us down the road, at least a couple hundred more monsters of varying types. They must've been waiting in the fields for us to pass by, Giants, cyclopes, more Dog-hybrids and worst of all, a whole unit of Centaur cavalry make formation and prepare more siege equipment.

A big Centaur donned in wicked looking armor yells out a command to his companions, they cheer and roar and start stomping towards us, arrows flying loose and pegging into the van.

Samson growls and spins the van the other way again, tires screeching angrily on the asphalt and starts racing us towards the Cynocephalus army.

"What are you doing?!" Percy cries hysterically, "Take us off road!"

"It's a van you dolt, I can't off-road in it! We'll get stuck or lose speed, our best choice is to out race them on the road!"

I look out at the enemy ranks ahead of us, they're mostly spread out with a few giants covering the gaps between the large masses. I scan over them some more and point out a spot that only has one giant between the hybrids.

"There, Samson aim for that giant! I'll take him out and we'll slip through the gap."

A few rifle rounds crash into the windshield, the glass cracking from holes they make. Gods this is going to be dangerous!

I pull my self out the window and aim for the giant, I line my shot up, but scream as a stinging pain explodes from my shoulder.

Percy pulls me inside and hovers over me worried, "Annabeth! Annabeth are you okay?!"

"I got shot Percy! Of course I'm not okay!"

I slap the gun in his hand and push him weakly to the window, he looks at the gun in his hand and back to me, his eyes wide in disbelief.

"Don't just look at me, kill the bastard!" His eyes harden and he nods, he pulls himself out the window and starts laying bullets down range at the giant. Each of his shots miss the target, hitting random monsters instead.

"Percy," Samson says calmly, "Don't fire wildly, take the time and aim. Line up the little dots, and inhale. Pull the trigger on the exhale, okay? Keep calm, then point and shoot."

Percy nods, and relaxes a little. He pops out of the window one more time and lines up his shot. He focuses down his sights, inhales deeply, then on his exhale pulls the trigger. The gun barrel launches fire as his round launches outwards.

We all hold our breath as time seems to slow, all our focus on the giant Percy was aiming for. It's head snaps back as blood and brain matter explode out the back of its skull. It trips over itself on its momentum and squash a bunch of smaller monsters with a nasty crunch before they all turn to dust and disperse in the wind.

Percy cheers and pulls himself back inside the van with us. I pat him lightly on the back as talks animatedly about his 'awesome shot', "Annabeth! Annabeth did you see that?! I hit something!"

"Percy, I'm happy for you, but get me some damn ambrosia!"

He flinches back, realizing I'm still wounded and scurries back into Samson's house, clanking around trying to find some healing stuff for me. I put pressure on my shoulder wound and pull myself back into the seat and look out the windshield just in time to watch my brother running over dozens of monsters as we drive straight through an angry army.

"Hey, your shoulder doing okay? You took a nasty shot there."

"It's fine," I say waving him off, "I've had worse before. I actually got stabbed with a poison dagger for him one time…. It wasn't pleasant."

"I can imagine, poison _sucks._ "

"I think you mean… _it bites."_

"What the Hades? That's venom you clod!"

I lean back in my chair and start laughing hysterically, I think the blood loss is affecting me or something.

We run over one last Dracanae for good measure before we finally clear the army and back onto open road.

He peeks at his side mirror, "Hey, Annabeth, can you hand me the gun right quick?"

I pass him the gun and he rolls down his window just as a heavily armored centaur gallops up next to the window and tries to stab Samson with a dagger.

Samson grabs the centaur's arm and yanks him close and places the gun on the under side of his chin, he pulls the trigger and the centaur's head snaps upwards and the body crumples down and disappears from view.

"Damn, that was hard core."

"Thanks, I got the idea from some movie in the future Apollo showed me one time. Something Wick I think?"

"I don't know who he is, but he sounds pretty cool."

Percy pops into the front through the drapes and hands me a bottle of nectar which I quickly chug like a sorority girl on party night.

"Thanks Percy," I say and look back at him. I reel back slightly when I see his shirt's all torn up an he has scratches everywhere on him, "Percy, what the Hades happened to you?"

He looks away sheepishly and scratches the back of his neck, "I couldn't find anything, so I went to Laila for help, but she just got out of the shower when I broke into her room. She was… upset."

Samson starts laughing in the driver's seat and I can't help but smile either, Percy gets into trouble literally anywhere he goes.

I lean back in my chair and sigh on content, the nectar flowing through my system, mending my wound and serving as a pretty good muscle relaxer too.

"Oooooh yeah, that's the stuff!"

"I hope you're fine relaxing for a while, because we need to stop at a mechanic."

"What, how come?! It's not… that bad." His voice trails off as Samson glares at him through the rear view mirror, don't mess with a man and his ride.

Samson and I look at Percy, then at all the bullet holes in the windows. He gets the idea and keeps his trap shut.

The sun's gone down by now, the moon just starting to raise in the sky. I excuse myself and head to my bedroom, a good night's sleep sounds absolutely amazing right now.

Of course, it had to be ruined by a stupid mystical dream.

* * *

My dreamscape is a gorgeous one, fields of dark grass stretch forever and ever, gentle winds blow across the landscape and the grass dances with each gentle breeze.

The sky is a deep dark color, speckles of light flash high above as the silver moon glows impossibly big over the horizon. Its beauty is entrancing, like looking into the very heart of nature itself. I can't help but lie down on the fresh grass and gaze into the beautiful night sky.

A gentle feeling brushes over my skin, a tingling energy that causes goosebumps to work its way down my arms.

I sit up and look out at the field. There, standing in front of the moon, waits two figures, their shadows hard like silhouettes on a blank sheet of paper.

Their features are nearly impossible to make out, but they're two grown women at the very least. They seem to be embracing, an older looking one holding the smaller one close to her side by her shoulders.

The taller one then begins turning her head towards me, silver light snaking across her face and illuminating her features more. I'm captivated by her beauty; her skin is an unworldly pale and her hair is a rich auburn.

I always admired Artemis's hair, but this stranger's even more regal and beautiful. Her green eyes peer at me, knowledge and wisdom practically seeping into me from them.

My legs don't respond to my command, like they've been frozen in place. The woman smiles, and her words come out like the sweetest fruit in the world, _"Take him to me, My Library of Alexandria. When the time comes, the island sings for you. Come to me, I await in the cursed sea. I would like to see my niece once again."_

She motions to the other still hidden in shadow. The other person slowly turns around, the face an eerie familiar one.

She… she looks like my brother, but different. Their eyes are silver, like Artemis's, but their hair is like black silk. Scars, small and shallow dot her face but don't retract from her beauty. I'm almost reminded of the craters on the moon when I look at her, fair skin contrasting a respectable amount of scars.

Then the shadows begin to creep forth, everything is consumed by a void of black, leaving only the moon and the figures before they too begin to fade away.

"Wait!" I cry out, desperately trying to keep them with me, "Who are you?!"

The black-haired woman words something at me, but no sound comes out; It's almost like she's mute. The auburn-haired woman smiles sweetly at me, her single word being the key that connects this hole dream together.

" _Mnemosyne."_

* * *

Slowly I open my eyes and rise from my bed, the dream from last night still vivid in my mind.

Mnemosyne.

The Titaness of memory, Kronos's older sister and one of the eldest Titan's in existence. She's friendly as far as Titans go, a true neutral party between every conflict of the gods since the beginning.

Getting a dream from her? That's not dangerous because of her, what makes it dangerous is because of the unknown that follows. She's rarely been seen by others since ancient times, getting a request from her is something almost nobody knows anything about.

I think back to what she told me, her Library of Alexandria in a cursed sea? Bring Him there? Cursed Sea is easy enough, but who is the _He_ Mnemosyne mentioned?

I shake my head clear and get dressed and equipped for the day, whomever the _He_ is we'll probably run into on the way to wherever the Titaness leads us.

It's not worth thinking about right now.

Breakfast came quick with Nico and Percy, and I made my way to the front looking for Samson. I look out the window and see that we're parked by a mechanics in a smallish looking town, people meander around with their daily works and travel here and there. It's a quaint place, even kind of lovely.

Samson finishes talking with a mechanic and hands him the keys to his van, he comes around to the window and passes along the news to me.

"I've got someone to fix up my van, but it won't be finished until later tomorrow. We're just going to stay at a motel for now, maybe explore the town if you guys are feeling up to it."

"Sounds fine to me, a little break. I'll get Percy and Nico." I look around suspiciously, _"Should we leave Laila behind?"_

He snorts at me, "But of course. Get whatever you'll need for the night, we've got a full twenty-four hours until we can continue on."

I slink back inside and pass the news on to Percy and Nico, they gather some supplies and exit the van. I follow behind and push the entire set of drapes on the slider to the left, closing the portal to his home and revealing the natural back end of the van.

The mechanic takes the van into his shop, and our little party heads off towards a local breakfast diner.

Once inside, we get seated and start ordering a nice meal for us. Thankfully Samson is actually fairly wealthy, his enchanted wallet having the ability to draw out enough money for whatever purchase he needs with exact change.

Percy questions him about it and Samson tells us the neat properties of the magic; the wallet essentially being a magical piggy bank that gives the user the exact amount from the internal storage for whatever they're purchasing.

He even offers to make us some, to which I agree fully. Hard cash like that with the storage capability of a bank account is great, like a personal ATM everywhere you go.

The boys eventually head off to the bathroom, leaving me alone at the table while I munch on my pancakes.

The waitress eventually comes back around toward me, her face blank and eyes glossed over. A peculiar feeling washes over me and a quiet ringing strikes at my ears. goosebumps roll down my arms and my instincts flare with danger.

I feel down towards my sword as the waitress stands over me, frozen like a statue.

" _Oh, put that away, it'll do you no good here."_ Her voice is distant, like it isn't even hers. Then it clicks, that _isn't_ her voice.

She continues, the voice speaking through the woman like she's a human speaker, _"Leave that sword behind and come outside,"_ The possessed waitress unveils a hidden steak knife and holds it to her throat, _"You know what's at stake if you don't. And keep that pretty mouth of yours_ _ **shut**_ _, no reason to involve the fools."_

I glare at her and pull my lips into a thin line, damn whomever is doing this!

The waitress follows behind me, knife snug against her throat as she leads me outside and towards a park a few minutes' walk away. No on around seems to notice a woman holding a knife to herself, the Mist must be at work here.

We stop in the center of a large park, and the knife falls from her hand as she stumbles lightly and clutches her head.

"Wh-what? How in the world did I get here?!" She looks at her watch and curses before running away to the diner before I can stop her and ask her to get my friends.

I quickly snatch up the knife and tuck it into my pants, thank Athena it was a clean!

"Ah, here she is! Miss grey-eye herself, one of the legendary seven."

I spin around and hold myself in a standard judo ready position, arms tucked close and prepared to strike.

A blonde, nigh white-haired woman comes around the side of a tree, hair disheveled and her clothes looking just the same. Her skin is so white she almost looks like a porcelain doll; even with her ratty appearance she's no doubt a gorgeous young woman.

Her eyes are an emerald rich green, pupils dilated and her smile toothy and wide. I can't help but shutter, give her red lipstick and makeup and she'd look like a female Joker.

She kicks her legs out as she circles around me, like a wolf around her prey.

"So! Tell me, what's up with you traveling with that _**FAKE**_ Samson over there?"

I guard myself and keep facing her as she encircles me, "He's not a fake, I've seen his memories. Mori, you have to stop this! Going against the gods is foolish, Titans and Gigantes are no better. Hades, they're worse if hubris anything to go on!"

"NO THEY'RE NOT!" She screams at me, and I wince under the sheer volume of her shout. Fuck she's got some lungs on her!

"I'VE SEEN THEIR TREACHERY, WHAT THEY DO TO US ALL! I LOST MY LOVE, MY HUSBAND TO THEM, BUT I'LL AVENGE HIM! I'LL BRING HIM BACK AND TOGETHER WE CAN BRING ABOUT A NEW AGE!"

Mori huffs in exertion as she hangs off of a tree to keep her balance, gods this lady needs therapy.

"Mori, you have to listen to me, Samson is ALIVE. He's back in that diner, no doubt looking for me right now. What ever is making you like this, _fight it._ You're strong, much stronger then the influence controlling you."

"NO. ONE. CONTROLS. ME." She growls, blue fire slowly erupts from the grass and surrounds us in a mini vortex of unworldly fire, "I CONTROL PEOPLE, I HAVE THE POWER!"

She exhales sharply and smooths her shirt out, "I see you're obsessed with lying." Her eyes snap to mine like a hawk, "You must be punished."

I barely duck under a swing from a silver cutlass that somehow formed in her hands, I follow up with a hard elbow jab to the underside of her ribcage and use all my might to throw her back.

My elbow stings in pain, it felt like I was hitting a brick wall! Mori growls and launches at me with a flurry of wild strikes from her sword, each missing as I dodge, duck, dip, dive and dodge away from them.

Thank the gods for that movie. I parry a strike from her and use a sword disarming technique, only to be surprised when the sword vanishes completely!

She punches me in my sternum and launches me back into the fire, I scream as I bounce off some invisible barrier and crumple to the floor. I grit my teeth and punch the ground to vent my frustrations, my chest aches from a bruise I can already feel forming and my back _screams_ from second degree burns that no doubt cover my skin.

The ground crunches towards me and Mori lifts me by my ponytail, I hiss as she brings me to her eye level.

"Aw, poor little girly, a little sheep amongst-" I cut her off by driving my fist into her throat. She releases my hair and stumbles back, gagging. I follow up with a kick to her gut that sends her to the floor.

I'm on top of her, delivering a flurry of powerful punches, hoping to knock her out.

Pain erupts in my gut, and she launches me off of her with a shove from her leg. I crash onto the ground, and clutch my gut to try and stop the blood from flowing out. My attempts are in vain, I feel my blood quickly pooling out onto the ground from both sides of me.

Oh fuck, that's going to be a problem. Mori wipes the cutlass she had earlier off with a bloody rag, how the hell did she get that again? She opens her hand and the sword transforms into a ring on her fire. I see, I'll have to keep that in mind.

"Oh fuck, that's going to be a problem," Mori says, and she reaches down to my bleeding sides and _piercing_ pain explodes into the wounds. I cry out shrilly as she burns the wounds, the pain unbearable and quickly causes me to start losing consciousness.

Before my mind fades, the last thing I see is Mori squatting over me, smiling as she pets my hair gently.

"Night, night sweetheart."

And then I black out.

* * *

I groan loudly as I start to come to, my gut still aches from being stabbed earlier. I sit myself up against the hard wall behind me and rub my eyes, they protest but I manage to open them up.

I'm currently sitting in a large concrete cell, the bars to it are thick and only an few inches apart. I make note that my hand can fit through.

There's some activity outside, so I groggily make my way and peek out from my bars. Thirty feet below me in a large underground cavern is a _massive_ operation of various monsters.

Cyclopes, giants, dracnae, empousa and uncountable others run about, carrying equipment to and fro many makeshift buildings. Weapons of all kinds are moved around, demigod ones and even outdated but still modern looking weaponry.

There're even old retired armored vehicles hidden underneath tarps, mortar APC's and old M60 tanks wait as burly Cyclopes weld new pieces of armor and various other upgrades.

"Okay, this seems pretty bad."

"For who?"

I jump as Mori appears behind me in my cell, an arrogant grin on her face as she admires the budding monster operation beneath us. I stand away as she comes to the bars and looks out around us, eyes trailing across every operation of the massive chasm.

"You say it's bad, I say it's amazing. How many times have monsters been united like this before, can you tell me?"

"I've lived through it many times. Mori, monster armies are _tragedies;_ things are destroyed, people are killed, and horrors are committed."

"And against who? Don't answer, it's simple really. You see, _monsters_ fight _monsters._ The Gods of Olympus are the worst of natures creatures, compare every tragedy and act of horror to the time of the Titans and you'll see what I mean."

"Please, you don't know _half_ of what you think you do!"

"No, I know too much! You think you've seen the ruin and desolation of the gods!? What a fool, more devastation has been committed by your _precious_ gods than any before. I've seen the Golden Age, I've had visions of times long since passed. Girly, that was a _**paradise**_ _."_

"A paradise for who? People will be hurt, people will be devastated if you destroy Olympus! You can't just flip the world like this, it isn't the right way! Change happens over time for a reason, this is closer to an extinction event then it is an easy way to salvation."

Mori looks away, an aura of danger perverting my mind as an overwhelming feeling of coming death washes over me, "…Then maybe extinction is what we need."

I reel back in shock, "Mori, you can't mean that! People's lives are more important then a petty need for revenge! You can't live like this, it isn't all about _you,_ you don't have the **right** _."_

She turns around, face furious. She snaps her fingers and I crumple to the ground in pain, the wound in my gut flaring to life like my insides are on fire.

"Don't patronize me, I have all the right in the world!" Her words are practically venom as she approaches me, rolling her hand around as blues energy surrounds it like a glove, "I see I can't change your mind with words, but my magic certainly can. Open up your mind to me, let me take control from here on out. You'll be a good little slave dearie, a Child of Athena AND one of the Seven will be an immensely useful tool."

She cups my chin as I writhe on the floor in pain, her emerald eyes shining with sadistic glee, "Let's make some magic together, you and I."


	35. Chapter 35

**A/N: A woman who looks like the moon? The Titaness of memory calling in a favor from our hero? Some fun things planned for this story, but those are much more long term events than the one we had setup before. Don't worry though, they'll all fit in by the end. Let's not forget that we have a vision of Bianca and a dead little girl in a Stygian Iron coffin. I'm sure someone can figure everything out though; the pieces are all there after all.**

* * *

 _With Annabeth, Spring 2011_

If you've never had your mind molested by an insane witch, I recommend you don't.

Mori latched her hand onto my forehead, and the agony I was suffering from by the cursed wound in my gut was quickly replaced by an even more potent and painful assault she's leading on my very mind.

It feels like thousands of maggots are swirling around in my brain, consuming it while I'm aware the entire time. My vision goes white as I feel a presence trying to consume my memories; I see Mori standing over Luke, Thalia and I as we rest in some dark and forgotten alley way. I see myself kissing Percy before he vanishes with my baseball cap, Mori just barely visible in the corner of my eye.

Her being pervers many more memories, the pain and treachery causing tears of sheer agony to spill from my eyes. She's ruining them, all of my memories and tainting them with her presence.

Like a shadow creeping across my mind, I feel myself slowly slipping away. Who's…who's Annabeth Chase?

My eyes slowly close, she's won. I'm… sorry… Percy.

Just before the darkness overtakes me, it feels like something passes from Mori's mind over to mine.

Who… are they?

* * *

The next following days were some of the strangest things I've experienced in my life. My body felt distant, like I was controlling it from a tv screen or something, only I don't think I _really_ was in control at all.

I was like a child, or a machine. I would go to my controller, Mori, and she would tell me to do something that which I would obey without question and complete in a timely manner like I usually do when I'm normal.

My vision and awareness would come and go in waves. One minute I was watching myself stock a pile of remote explosives, then everything went dark. When I could see again it was hours later and I was completing and entirely different task.

Being controlled like this, it **terrifies** me. Tartarus scared me because death was imminent constantly, being possessed scares me in a completely new way.

It's the fear of having no control at all.

Is this how Percy and Jason felt with the eidolons, just being a witness in your own body?

I'm currently holding a tray of refreshments while Mori lounges back in her office chair, playing with her silvery cutlass.

"Tell me, Annabeth, how would you go about destroying the Gods of Olympus?"

"I'd go after their demigods Ma'am, spend many years killing them young so they can't get to camp. Then I'd gather up a worthy enough task-force and assault the camp, take out as many as I could."

"Hmmm, interesting, very interesting. Tell me more, I want the full story on this."

"After weakening the camp as much as possible, I'd gather as many Titan allies as I could, free the most powerful ones from Tartarus and bring them to mount Othrys. There they can rebuild their thrones and gain power, and without any demigods Olympus would be forced to intervene personally. That makes it perfect for a trap, secretly you must gather all of the most ancient monsters the gods fear and have them lie in wait. The gods will be out of their element in Othrys, making them weak and vulnerable to a surprise attack from Titans and ancient monsters."

"But surely Olympus would have back up, a legion of minor gods to assault with them. How would we possibly handle an army of Gods? The Titans are only so few, we'd be outnumbered even with eldritch monsters."

"That's why we must turn them, use the deaths of the demigods at camp as leverage. Show them how the Olympians did nothing to save their children, that under the Titan regime things will be different. Promise them freedom and respect and they'll join by the dozens. Olympus will be alone, no demigods or minor gods by their side when the fighting begins."

Mori chuckles darkly and pats my head, "You're truly a Child of Athena, so few can come up with a solid plan to destroy Olympus without a trump card. Good thing we'll have one. Typhon was made to destroy Olympus, we dredge him up from Tartarus and loose him on the gods. He distracts the Olympians, we destroy the camps."

She sips some dark wine I pour for her, and she leans back in her reclining chair and looks at the numerous plans she has plastered over her wall, "Even if they manage to defeat Typhon once again, they'll already be too late. The Titans will have rebuilt their thrones, the camps will have been decimated, and our trap shall be ready to be sprung. The gods will have no choice but to come to us, and with no demigods our plans shall be unchallenged. We will have _won_."

Mori stands and walks over to me and places the edge of her sword under my chin, the sharp blade tickling my throat. I feel nothing, no emotions at all. If she wishes then I will die for my mistress.

"Such a strange thing, to control minds like this. I could tell you to push your neck further and you would do so without a single complaint."

She removes the blade, a big grin on her face as she basks in her own glory, "Now off with you," She shoos me away with her hand, "Go work on the stock or whatever, I need some time to myself."

I bow to her respectfully and turn around outside the door and close it behind me. I make my way down the flight of stairs and start heading towards the explosive's armory. The base is very large, even in this underground cavern. It takes me half an hour to reach my destination, passing by burly and nasty monsters of every kind.

Thankfully they know better then to mess with me, I'm Mori's personal assistant practically. Their fear of her is greater than their desire for revenge against me.

I walk into the armory and close the door behind me, locking it for my own safety. Even though I'm untouchable to the monsters, the magic controlling me has been smart enough not to risk our own safety as much as possible.

This other me is just as crafty and clever as I am. That's REALLY not good, an evil me could destroy the entire demigod world.

I grab my checking sheet and start counting off the stock of explosives, making sure our arsenal isn't being hijacked by rogue or idiotic monsters.

As I'm busy with my work, a strange feeling of nausea over comes me. I barely manage to hold onto to something before I eventually crumple to the ground, the sickness eating away at my insides.

Then something clicks in my mind, like a lever has been pulled or something. I can… think again!

The nausea passes, and I stand up, completely in control of myself again. That horrible feeling of being disconnected from my body is completely gone now, I'm back!

But I'm not out of the woods yet, I'm still trapped… wherever the hell I'm at right now.

Okay, first I need to gather my thoughts and formulate a plan. Mori has an army with modern equipment, she's being controlled or otherwise influenced by something, and as far as I know everyone still thinks I'm enthralled by her.

A smirk creeps up on my face, this is the perfect chance to disrupt the machinations here, and I know _just_ where to start!

I grab a bag from the wall and start loading it up with remote explosives and hiding a detonator in my pocket, I'll have to hide it in my room later. Some sabotage is just what I need to get the hell out of this place! I open the door and start heading off towards the vehicle depot.

As I'm walking, thoughts and theories flow through my mind. How in the world was I freed from the spell? Did someone release me from it? If so, then who was it?

Not just that, but what's influencing Mori's mind? Just before I blacked out when she used her magic on me, I felt another presence in her mind. I couldn't get any image of what it was, just the feeling of _something_ being inside her.

Samson's going to be happy about this at the very least. His wife _isn't_ crazy, she's just being controlled like how Luke was before Kronos fully took over.

I stop dead in my tracks. _Before Kronos fully took over._

Whatever is influencing her must be doing the same thing Kronos did! Take over a host before destroying it to unveil its true form!

I quickly speed up my walking, I have to get this done quick and get back to everyone. We have to save Mori before she's possessed and sacrificed!

The vehicle depot was thankfully empty when I got to it. I quickly place the explosives on the most dangerous vehicles, APC's, tanks, artillery, and hide them in spots hopefully none of the Cyclops mechanics will notice.

Finishing up with that, I look back into my bag. Completely out. However, nothing is stopping me from… acquiring some more to be put in other key places.

* * *

"Have you completed your tasks for the day?"

"Yes mistress."

"Excellent. Now, come over here and rub my shoulders, I've had a stressful day."

I walk over and start kneading her shoulders with my hands, Mori groans and melts back in her chair. Gods I so desperately want to shank her with the steak knife I've been heading for the past few days, the things I've seen her do has been nothing short of deplorable.

But I have to keep reminding myself it isn't her fault, she's being influenced by some kind of force inside of her mind. She's my brother's wife, I can't make myself do that to him.

"Ahhhh, that's the good stuff. Thank you, girly. Tell me something though, who used magic on you?"

My hands freeze, "…I am… unsure what you mean?"

"Please, I've had people watching you the entire time you were here. I know about your little sabotage attempts."

She lifts her hand in the air and twirls the remote detonator I stole, "It was a good attempt, but I've seen this kind of craftiness before. Did you forget I'm married to your brother? I know all the ins and outs of Children of Athena, and all those bombs you placed have been disarmed and removed by now. So please, **who released you?!** "

My hand is like a blur as I reach into my pants and go to stab Mori with the steak knife. She was even quicker, her chair swivels around and she extends her hand out. A blast of blue energy launches me back and I slam into the wall on the far end of the room, the wall cracking from the impact.

Fuck, she's smarter than I thought!

I pull myself off the floor with a heavy groan. Knife in hand I ready myself for her attack, this won't be like last time as I have at least _something_ to use as a weapon this time.

She grins at me as her ring turns into a long cutlass, deep red fire burning along the edge and casting an eerie glow in the room.

Okay, that's new.

I dodge left as she jumps to gore me with her sword, following up with a jab of the knife into the side of her shoulder. She parries with her sword and swings it back around again to spill my guts open. I barely dodge it, the blade even cutting a small line in my shirt.

Mori growls angrily and prepares to stab me fencer style, on her thrust I guide it into the wall and stab the knife into her hand, splitting the bones and forcing her to drop the sword.

It transforms into a ring on her finger and I quickly jab her eyes deeply with my fingers and start wrestling with her arm, holding it in place as I tear the knife free and quickly try my best to take the ring off.

She cries a roar of rage and starts swinging me around with just her one arm as she clutches her bleeding eyes with the other. Gods this girl is strong!

Fed up with trying to take the ring, I instead saw her finger off with the knife, grinding against her bone until the whole things is weak enough that I simply rip it off with a hard yank, golden blood flying everywhere as she grits her teeth and throws arm into the air and launching me into the ceiling.

I crash back down on her desk with a heavy thud, my knife flying away somewhere out of reach. Something heavy taps onto my face as I come out of my dazed state. Examining it causes some elation, it's the detonator!

Mori's eyes have finally healed over, the bone and flesh on her missing finger slowly creeping along as it regenerates, the flesh making disgusting gurgling sounds as it does.

I groan as I meet Mori's eyes again, gods that's so unfair.

She picks up her coffee table and hurtles it at me, hitting the desk and causing it to crash through the window. I scurry over the table and meet Mori mid charge, kicking her knee out and driving my fist into her temple.

I hiss and clutch at my hand, my knuckles aching in pain from colliding with her stupidly strong skull. She crumples to the ground but quickly reverses it by spinning with her leg out and sending me to the floor. I hit my head on the edge of her desk on my way down, I can already feel the blood spilling out and onto the floor.

Before I can react, she grabs me by my throat and holds me in the air, my feet not even touching the floor anymore. I make a weak show of resistance, there's no way I can break her grip, but I can possibly fool her if I pull this off right.

I go for a knuckle punch to her eye, but she grabs my wrist and squeezes tightly. That sick _pop_ followed by piercing pain is all the signs I need to know she just sprained my wrist. Ouch.

"Face it girl," She exclaims to me, walking us over and holding me out of the broken bay window, the ground easily a hundred feet down, "I know all your moves! Hades, I was there when they were first developed. There's nothing you can do that I don't already know is coming!"

She brings me close so our eyes are only inches apart, "I've already gotten what I need from you, so why bother keeping you around? I think you'll make a lovely color when I drop you onto the concrete!"

I manage to choke a smirk at her, weakly raising my hand that still grips the detonator. Her eyes widen as I flick the switch and press the trigger. Several buildings suddenly explode and topple down, the armory making a massive chain explosion that shakes the entire cavern.

"Knew…was followed…hid…more!" I manage to choke out as Mori looks on in horror at the series of explosions destroying massive sections of her base.

With her so close, I throw my head forward and slam my forehead into hers, making her cry out as we stumble backwards and crash into the floor.

I'm up before she is, delivering a series of heavy kicks that crunches nastily against her face. Her eyes flutter as she falls unconscious, and I support myself against her desk, gasping for air and rubbing my raw neck.

"That, I learned from Percy!"

Suddenly, the entire cavern groans and rumbles, the distant sounds of rocks falling reaching my ears. The cavern is collapsing!

I quickly run over and throw the door open but stop before I exit. I look back at Mori's unconscious form, and I'm faced with a dilemma. Leaver her, or save her? I might be able to make it out if I leave her behind, but what would Samson say? Take her with, and I might not be quick enough to get out at all.

I groan in annoyance and act on my choice.

* * *

Monsters of all kinds scream and roar in mixes of fury and fear, the survivors of the bombs bee-lining it for a large cave that I remember leads to the outside.

I shift Mori's unconscious body on my back, her bloody ring snug on my finger as I push my way through debris and scattered monsters, my destination only a quarter mile away.

A cyclops screams as a large boulder drops down on it from the ceiling, and I pick up my pace, cursing under my breath as the heat from the fires causes sweat to pour down my face and the smoke from the explosions choking the air out of my lungs.

It's pure chaos the closer I get to the exit, monsters thrash against each other as they push their way through the wide gap, some just flat out killing to get their way through.

I remember from the maps, we're at least half a mile away from the outside if we follow this tunnel. There's no we're going to make it in time on foot!

Through the thick smoke, I make out a form. I race over to it and throw the tarp covering it off, revealing a banged-up Humvee. I throw Mori into the back seat and start digging through the compartments, desperately searching for the keys!

More and more boulders begin falling from the ceiling, smashing buildings and monsters with wanton callousness.

I start breathing rapidly as fear my fear builds up, my search becoming more and more frantic!

Suddenly, the Humvee starts on its own, the engine roaring to life and leaving me with a sense of bewilderment and awe.

How-how in the world?

The loud crackling of a building collapsing shakes me out of my disbelief. I pull myself into the drivers seat and lay on the gas, the tires screeching against the ground as we race forward. I run over a hollering empousa, the vehicle bouncing as I no doubt squash her under the tires, and start running over the crowd as I follow them to the exit.

I ignore the nasty crunching sounds of monsters as I continue driving over them, the crowd is thick and hard for me to drive at higher speeds through. I shift gears and the engine roars angrily, the whole vehicle lurching forward and gaining more and more speed.

The steering wheel fights against me, it takes all of my might to keep it steady and control the Humvee. A loud crackling boom explodes far behind me, dust comes flying past and beats against the windows, a great amount flying around inside from hole in the window.

Monsters outside cough violently, many suffocating from a mix of the toxic fumes and dust. A few desperately beat against the doors, but I over pass them and eventually the entire retreating horde disappears into the darkness entirely.

I switch gears again and tear down the now opened path, the ground rumbles angrily as the collapsing cave slowly begins catching up with me. I curse and swerve away from a falling rock in front of my, the collapse is passing me!

My foot presses on the gas even harder and I start hitting max speeds, avoiding dangerously close calls and fighting to prevent myself from running into the sides of the cave.

Eventually a bright light flashes ahead. It's the exit!

Hope swells up inside of me. I grit my teeth and focus on my driving, I'm almost there!

I hit a small dip that eventually leads into a small ramp right before the exit, the momentum of the Humvee throwing us high into the air.

Time slows down for me as I watch my Humvee slowly start spinning in the air, any chance for a even landing completely impossible now. The ground slowly approaches, and then time speeds up.

We crash hard into the snow ground, rolling several times over before we come to a stop. Unfortunately, I didn't put seat belts on Mori or myself.

I was thrown out of the vehicle immediately on impact.

* * *

I cough violently as I wake up, the dust in my lungs burning as my whole-body aches in absolute pain. Gods, it feels like I was poisoned!

Someone puts their hand on my head, immediately much of the pain subsides and leaves my body feeling weary instead of broken.

"There, there, rest now, hero."

The voice belongs to a woman, but it's kind of strange. It feels… disconnected almost. Like the speaker is out of practice with conversations or something, it was kind of robotic.

Despite the monotone voice, I could pick up on the impression of gratitude and a gentle motherly tone in her voice.

Something squeaks in my ear and starts nuzzling into my face, short soft fur tickling as I weakly swat at it. I feel it lifted off of me followed by a quiet chuckle.

I groan and rub my eyes open, sitting up off the cold ground and looking around.

Night time's risen in the sky, a beautiful aurora ghosting across the sky. A warm fire burns next to me, the heat keeping the biting cold of the tundra we're in at bay.

A woman in a beautiful black chiton gazes into the sky, her emerald eyes sparkling from the beautiful natural phenomenon above our heads. Her hair is a gorgeous blonde, like strands of gold almost. She turns and looks at me, and I flinch slightly when I see her face, thinking it's Mori.

I exhale in relief when I realize it's someone either worse or better, depending on the time of day really.

"Lady Hecate," I bow as best I can, "Thank you for saving me."

Her head tilts to the side, "It seems like I did, didn't I? Was it me, or one of the other me's? Such a strange feeling, to have done something yet not at the same time. Appreciation is a wonderful emotion, a reward for our hardest work. Whichever words and choices you choose, it is I who must thank _you,_ my young hero."

A weasel pops it's head up from her chiton and climbs up onto her shoulder, rubbing against her neck like a cat. Hecate brings a hand up and gently pets its head.

"You've done a wonderful service, saving my daughter from years trapped under cold stone." She looks away, and I follow her gaze and spot the wreck of the Humvee, "She's lost sight of herself, but I sense her peace coming soon."

Her eyes come back to me, "Continue as you were with your quest. Our plan shall be realized along the way."

"W-what plan?" I manage to croak out, my voice still hurting from all of the dust. She just cracks a tiny smile, "Just a small plot. Everyone shall be healed in the end, even my dearest aunt. Though for me, the true prize is the realization of my favorite daughter's health."

I look around in fear, "Is she around, where's she gone?!"

"Peace, Daughter of Wisdom, she left long ago. I was quite surprised she left you alive, no doubt she still possesses honor. We must be leaving now, I have withheld our destinies long enough. I saved you from my daughter's control, it is not in your destiny to be enthralled. And now, you must be gone."

Before I can question her more, she snaps her fingers and I disappear into the shadows. Screams and other unholy aberrations yell into my ear as I shadow travel… somewhere.

Gods, can Gods be finicky creatures, I barely go anything out of Hecate before she sent me away! I suppose I should be grateful, I likely would've frozen to death in whatever tundra I was in if she hadn't interfered.

The shadows part and I find myself standing alone in a familiar dark room. I look around and confirm my location, Samson's living room.

"Annabeth?" I spin around, looking incredulously at me is a bed-headed Samson. He quickly runs over and pulls me into a bone crushing hug. I smile and reciprocate, being in familiar arms is more then comforting because of what's happened to me these past few days.

We part and he rattles off in questions, "What happened?! Where've you been?! Who did this to you?! Are you sure you're okay?!"

I push him towards the couch and recite my tale over the past few days; my kidnap and enslavement by Mori, the discovery of her possession and my destruction of her hidden base, ending it with our escape and me being teleported here by Hecate.

He sighs deeply in relief and hands me some ambrosia to help with my lingering pain. Being that we're both exhausted, we decide to save all the other worries for a later time. Before I head towards Percy and I's room, I ask him about where we're at on the quest and how far along we are on the path towards the Hesperides.

Samson's face turns into a grimace, "In a day and a half we'll be at the junkyard. Annabeth, Nico wants to find his sister's body."

An uneasiness fills in my stomach, "He can't know, not yet."


	36. Chapter 36

**A/N: It's that time again, a special big chapter for a special event. We're going to find one of Samson's missing items, have a fun time in a cursed Junkyard, and see some old acquaintances from back in the day. Plus we'll finally find out what's up with the coffin, maybe break some laws of nature who knows.**

* * *

 _With Annabeth, Spring 2011_

"Percy, let go of my arm!"

"If I do, you might leave and never come back!"

"You have to the count of three."

"But baaaaabe!"

"One."

"I'm not scared, I've fought Kronos before!"

"Two."

He lets go of my arm and sits on the opposite end of the couch from me, cowering lightly as a single drop of sweat falls down the side of his face. He's been practically attached to me ever since I came back, I almost didn't get any sleep last night with his constant worrying.

Gods do I love this boy-no this _man._

I smirk at him, it's a good feeling when your boyfriend is more scared of you then he is the foulest Titan in existence. Laila scoffs at us and makes fake gagging noises.

"Gods you two are so sweet it's **sick**. How can you even stomach that fool? I've seen rocks with more brains then him."

"Hey!" Percy protests, "I'm not a fool! I get good grades in school."

She raises an elegant eyebrow at him and crosses her arms, a skeptical look on her face, "Uh huh, who's your tutor?"

"W-what? I don't… have a tutor?"

He looks to me, his eyes pleading me to help him out, "I'll have you know _I'm_ his tutor, and there's nothing wrong with that! Demigods have ADHD, we all need a little help here and there."

"Did you ever need a tutor?"

"Of course not! I'm a Child of Athena, I don't need some half-wit telling me what to do!"

Laila grins at me, barely suppressing laughter as she hides her smile with her hand. I blush lightly and glare at her, damn this lady! She's always been good at getting under my skin, one of these days I'm going to get her back! Or I'll just kill her after the quest or something, she's a monster _and_ a witch after all.

"Hey, Annabeth? Have you seen Nico anywhere?"

Ah, that's a topic of great worry right now. According to Percy, Nico's been becoming more and more distant during the few days Mori enslaved me, he's been snappy and acting like how he was during the Labyrinth crisis.

"I haven't seen him, he disappeared somewhere in the house."

"Are you talking about the brooding darkness with the overstuffed coat?" Laila asks, she point towards a long hallway that splits off in the kitchen, "Last I saw he was outside in the courtyard digging a hole and throwing a bunch of animal blood into it."

Okay, that's not good. Crap he's summoning something isn't he? I excuse myself and start heading towards the 'outside' Laila mentioned. Does this place have an outside? Oh! What if it's like the Tardis? The drapes are a portal to some other dimension maybe?

Percy decided to stay behind, apparently Nico's been taking his frustrations out on him and Percy being there with me might make things worse than they already are.

I follow the hallway Laila pointed me too and wind up in a large parlor room, big glass windows to the one side that lead outside to a massive deck decorated with life-sized statues of various gods. I stop by one of mother and take in the detail; the sculptor did a good job, it looks just like her.

The world outside is, to my surprise, the actual world. Samson's house seems to be in the middle of thick pine tree woods, but a strange feeling works its way inside of me.

I think back to what Lou had told me a long time ago, that magic sensitive demigods often feel strange in places where powerful magics have been cast.

It seems like Circe wasn't lying to me when she said I had the makings of a sorceress back when Percy and I went to save Grover from Polyphemus. I wonder if his home is like Ogygia then? It exists in the world but doesn't at the same time?

A phantom forest maybe?

I focus back on my task and walk down the steps into the courtyard. Gods this place is big, at least a football fields size with tons of plants, statues and water features. I take a quick peek back and see how big his actual house is.

Alright, as it turns out it's not a home, it's an old-style English palace. Not as big as modern ones, but definitely charming given its apparent age.

Has that asshole been keeping us locked up in only a part of his home this entire time?! Though I guess I can't blame him, Percy is notoriously clumsy and might destroy something valuable that I know he won't ever be able to pay for.

I walk through Samson's courtyard some more, searching for a hiding spot in the corner somewhere that I'm certain Nico would find for his ritual.

A few minutes' walk I find Nico chanting over a burning pool blood hidden behind some tall shrubbery. He's clearly agitated, his chanting is forced and his shoulders are tensed.

After a minute he stops, and the otherworldly fire dies down as all of the blood is consumed. Nico's shoulders sag and a deep sigh escapes his lips, his back still turned from me as he finally addresses my presence.

"What do you want?" That almost wasn't even a question, more of a demand. The way he commanded me makes goosebumps roll down my arms, in that moment I swear he was more like his father then I've seen him in a long time.

"I was worried, Laila told me what's been going on."

"Yeah? Well, it's over now, I'm done." He turns around and walks past me, practically stomping as his dark eyes glare harshly ahead.

I reach out and grab his arm before he goes to far. His head snaps back to me and he yanks his arm roughly away, "What's your problem?! I said I was fine!"

"Nico! Nico, _please._ Just talk to me, or even anyone! We're friends, _family_ even. We can help, but you need to let us in!"

He almost snarls at me and spins back around and starts marching away, "I don't need help, I need answers! I've made it this far on my own, I don't need some nosey brainiac butting in when they have no right to!"

I reel back lightly as Nico stomps away. He's hurting, clearly upset because we're going to the place his sister died. I understand his frustrations, Nico's barely a teenager and has had to deal with some of the most torturous things to a person's psyche.

Hades, sometimes it feels like the Fates themselves hate Nico and just want him to suffer. Like some giant middle-aged man named Rick in he sky wants this poor boy to suffer.

So I get it, I really do. Still… it doesn't make it hurt any less when Nico acts this way. _It makes me feel like I'm failing him._

I think… I think some time with my brother sounds good right about now.

* * *

I walk through the drapes leading into Samson's Van and plop down in the passenger's seat. I put my feet up on the dash and lean back, the comfy leather seats practically absorbing me into them.

Samson glances at me through the mirror, "Hey, doin' okay? You seem a little stressed out."

"It's… Ah, Nico's having a rough time, he's snapping at us and becoming distant again. I found him digging a hole in your courtyard, trying to summon something. He failed, and it seems like he took it personally."

"Wait, he did what to my grass?!" He coughs into his fist and regathers his composure, "Anyways, what's your relation to him? He seems like he has the whole world for emotional support."

"He's a Child of Hades, that's already enough for the world to be after him. Nico's never been popular around camp, only a few people really care for him. During the wars he was integral to victory, but he had to make himself out as a traitor to ensure we could succeed. Even with all his help, so few appreciate him."

"Tell me about his sister, Bianca, right? I know she died young, yet I can tell there's more to it then just her death. Something else is tied to her."

I stare up at the ceiling, thinking about Bianca is a sore topic, even for me. I don't want to hate the girl, Hades I never even met her! But, all of the actions I've heard her take gives me the impression she's incredibly selfish.

Leaving Nico alone for the Hunters so she could have new ' _family',_ going on a quest with two days training and a blessing she had no idea how to handle, dying on said quest and refusing to help Nico in his time of need, then severing her connection with him entirely before eventually going for rebirth supposedly.

I sigh deeply and sink deeper into the chair. Gods, she's basically abandoned her own **brother** many times for selfish reasons and let him suffer essentially alone, void of any personal family at all.

Honestly, I kind of despise her. And If _I_ feel that way, then I can't even imagine how Nico feels. Heck, even Percy probably is torn inside, he was her friend and traveled with her to find Artemis and I all those years ago.

I tell Samson my feelings on Bianca, bottling up all those emotions inside is so relieving to share it with someone close. I love Percy to death and back, but a brother is a different shoulder to lean on.

Samson's quiet for a minute, digesting all of the information I shared and finding his own feelings on the situation.

"That's a very… precarious situation. Honestly, with second hand knowledge it seems like she was sort of a shitty sister. I'm not licensed, but I get the impression Nico is upset because he's gotten no closure with Bianca. Her departure from life to isolation in the underworld eats at his psyche, leaving him in a constant state of anxiety because the cause of his troubles can't be resolved."

I had the same conclusion too, that Nico's so frustrated now because he's so close to his closure and every minute that passes without it makes him more and more angry.

Fingers crossed Samson and Laila's magic experiment upstairs works out, if it does Nico might finally be able to get his closure for good. That or it can back-fire and he'll blow up and runaway for months again.

"Oh fuck me this whole things sucks ass!"

"Hera's sake Annabeth! I never thought you could swear so much!"

"Shut it you!" I playfully punch his shoulder and sit back in my seat, both of us smiling at our bonding, "Any ideas on how I can help him?"

Samson hums quietly, "I say just leave him be for the moment. From what I see, people fawning over him makes him uncomfortable, and right now he's being taxed to his max."

Makes sense, I suppose we need to let Nico be on his own for the time being. When he's ready he'll come to us, we'll always be there when he needs us.

My brother glances at me from his mirror, "Hey, I just want to say thank you, I really appreciate it."

"Yeah man, no problem. Also, what did I do?"

"You know," He looks around suspiciously before whispering, _"The thing?"_

My mouth comes into a silent O. Right, the _Thing._ Gods keeping that a secret has been hard, Nico has so much of a right to know what's going on with that coffin, but we just **can't,** if Samson and Laila fail he'll never forgive them or me.

I don't know if he will even if they succeed, it's such a crappy thing for me to keep it secret. Regardless of it, I understand why I have to keep my mouth shut.

"No problem, just make sure you succeed, okay? I'm really going against my principals for you, so you don't fail, capiche?!"

"Sir yes sir!" Samson does a half-mock salute in his seat. I roll my eyes and look out the window. I'm glad I have an older brother now, it's honestly refreshing not to be the big sibling anymore. Doing some back and forth like this is a relief, even if we both come to the same conclusions without saying It out loud.

"I'm taking a nap, try and drive carefully."

He scoffs, "Please, I know how to keep this ride _smooth,_ I've honed my skills over the years. That and the new parts I got from the mechanic really helps out too."

I chuckle lightly and turn away, leaning the chair back and closing my eyes. Thankfully I had a nice regular dream this time.

* * *

A dark atmosphere hangs around us as Samson brings us ever closer to the cursed Junkyard, everyone tense and anxious for what's about to happen. Nico broods in the shadows, almost indistinguishable from them, his hands idly fiddling with a lead Hades mythomagic statue.

Percy sits alone in the loveseat, his face is pulled into a scowl-like look he usually has, the idle brooding looks normal people notice he has.

Two Children of the Big Three brooding like this makes the air uncomfortable, the pressure of their emotions having a physical effect on the world. Laila files her nails, seeming to disregard the atmosphere completely.

Looking at her body language, I can tell she's actually just as tense as I am.

Samson pops his head through the drapes, he nods at us once and then disappears back through the drapes. Whelp, guess it's showtime.

Nico stands up abruptly and storms pass me, following after Samson. Percy stands up slowly and lumbers past me too, face still holding his brooding expression.

I look back at Laila, she shrugs her shoulders, "I'm not going. You fucks can die for all I care, I'm staying here to make sure she wakes up fine and all that shit."

She goes back to filing her nails and I roll my eyes and meet everyone outside.

I meet up with everyone at the entrance and by the gods, this place is **huge.**

Trash as far as the eye can see, like an ocean of rubbish and discarded belongings. Man, the gods are pigs if this is their trash pile.

Percy walks over next to me, "Gods this place stinks, you think the gods would be cleaner than this."

"They're gods, they have other people to clean up their messes," I look across the mountains upon mountains of trash and crinkle my nose, "I think they need to hire new people, the old ones are lazy and just threw it all here."

Samson comes around my side, eyes scanning for a proper path we can take, "This isn't the only junkyard. I fought a Drakon and Cacus in one out by the east coast, only that one wasn't cursed or anything. Speaking of which, what's the deal with this place?"

"It's basically Hephaestus's junkyard," Percy says, "Out of all the gods he's the most defensive of his trash. We fought a Talos prototype years ago here. That's what… killed Bianca."

Samson glances at Percy through the corner of his eye, but he stays quiet. The events that transpired here has had a pretty big impact on Percy, he's never been this… well I guess depressed before.

Coming back to places of tragedy must be hard on him, a reminder of times when he didn't come out on top without sacrifices.

Samson's similar to Percy in that way; both had to lose things close to them to be where they're at right now. Luke to Kronos, Thalia to Artemis, Bianca to Talos, Silena, Charles and everyone else who we lost in the wars.

Demigods lose things close to them, we've _all_ lost people.

I hold Percy's hand and lean against him. He gently squeezes my hand and continues to stare out longingly at the junkyard. Perhaps, deep down inside, he wants to find Bianca's body too.

"Samson," Nico says, and we jump slightly. Gods this kid is good at sneaking, "I'm going in. Don't take anything that isn't yours."

He walks briskly past us and disappears around the heaps of rubbish. Samson sighs and rubs his temples, "Alright Scooby Gang, looks like we're splitting up for some dumb reason. Does someone want to keep an eye on Nico? Kids a walking case of morbidity."

Percy lets go of my hand and storms up to Samson, "Have some respect you jackass! His sister died here!"

"Percy!" I yell at him, but he ignores me and continues sizing up my brother.

Samson flinches back, his body tense as he grips his can tightly, "Exactly my point. He needs someone to supervise him, otherwise he might get himself in danger! I've seen this before, he's going to waltz right into danger if he has nobody else to help him keep a level head."

Percy clenches his fist, his jaw tightening as he continues glaring at my brother. Alright, that's enough! I storm over to Percy and drag him off my brother by his arm.

"Percy, that's enough!" I chastise, "This isn't like you. So stop acting like a bully and get yourself under control!"

He looks away from me, face still hardened before turning around and marching straight into the junkyard, following the same path Nico took.

"I'm going to help Nico." Is all he says before he disappears like Nico had earlier.

"Perseus Jackson you get back here this instant! Do you hear me?! I said get back here NOW!"

No response. I scream into my hands and kick a rock far away into the junkyard. I hear Nico yell 'OW' somewhere deep inside.

Samson puts his hand on my shoulder, "Let's… just go in from another way. I can sense my bow, it's now far. We'll grab it and let everyone cool down, then we can meet up with the boys in a couple minutes."

I huff angrily and follow Samson along, following a spilt in the path. I look at some of the interesting things in the trash; solid gold spears and other weapons, broken machinery and pieces of automatons, magazines depicting various gods in bathing suits and other such crap.

Samson _really_ looks like he wants to take one of the magazines, and I kind of want to too. That picture of Apollo on the front magazine is HOT.

We walk for about ten minutes, and I decide to strike up a conversation. "You never told me you lived in a palace! Where in the world did you get that place?"

He kicks a loose sheet of metal out of our way, "That? Oh right, Mother gave it to me as an anniversary present actually. Apparently one of her kids designed it forever ago but it was being torn down, so she took it and gave it to me."

"…She… took a building?"

He shrugs, "Don't ask me how or where she stored it." Samson looks around the junkyard nervously, like he's expecting someone to pop out of nowhere. "Hey, is Nico… gay?"

"Um… yes?" I glance at him suspiciously, "Is there a problem with that?"

"No, No!" He blunders out, this is the first time I've seen him flustered actually. Huh, almost adorable in a way, "Of course I don't hate gays! I just… when did he… chose you know? He looks kinda young?"

I slap him hard across the face before I even realize I'm doing it. My whole arms stings after, and Samson slinks back a little and clutches the slightly golden spot on his cheek.

"Ouch dammit Annabeth! What the Hades was that for?!"

I exhale sharply and try and reel back my anger. Gods, I can't believe I forgot he's from the sixties, of _course_ he's ignorant about homosexuals, people were heavily bigoted back then.

"Look, I'm sorry for slapping you, it was an automatic reaction. Regardless, you need to learn some respect for Nico's lifestyle. He was _born gay,_ just like every Homosexual in the world, and that's _okay,_ got it?!"

He scowls at me but nods, I humph happily and continue past him, "If you're really a Child of Athena, then you'll talk with Nico later and learn more about homosexuality. It doesn't pay to be ignorant after all."

Samson follows behind me, grumpily mumbling about some school of magic or other he founded and _he's_ ignorant? I smile at my victory over him, now _I'm_ the one on top!

We stop at a large pile of random garbage and Samson, who's worked himself out of his grumpy mood, pulls up the sleeves of his long-sleeve shirt and starts clawing through the trash.

I make out brief glimpses of an intricate looking tattoo on his left forearm, "You've got a tattoo?"

He pulls his hands from the crap and holds his arm closer so I can see it, "It's a gift from Artemis. Her Hunters have the ability to summon silver bows, and I can too. Only instead of a hair piece mine turns into this tattoo here. When… Mother killed me she must've accidentally scattered my equipment across the world. I still can't find my ring, but last I heard it ended up with a Gargarean ruler."

He's back to digging until he grabs something and pulls it clean from the pile, "Aha! Here it is!"

I take a second with him to admire the bow. It's standard length, but much more beautiful then the bows the Hunt uses. Samson's bow is thicker with beautiful engraving around it, the top and bottom shelf of the bow that cup his hand have ornate bull heads facing each other.

That's… curious to me, bulls aren't associated with Artemis so why does this bow have them?

His bow glows white and turns into a mass of light similar to a snake that crawls across Samson's hand and merges into his tattoo. It glows white before fading and revealing his tattoo in more vivid color and detail.

"Holy crap, that's beautiful."

Samson smiles before his body flickers like a glitching video game. He turns into a young woman with silver eyes and brown hair for a fraction of a second before glitching and turning back into my brother again.

"What… the hell?! Are you okay?!"

"Don't worry, I'm fine! She's my past life actually, a former Hunter who was originally the owner of our bow. We trade off which form we take every so often, she was just excited to have our bow back."

I stare at him dumbfoundedly. Gods I wish I was magic! He can do so many amazing things, a Child of Athena with magic truly is a wonderful thing. Unfortunately, I can't help but be a little jealous.

Now I can see moms point. If he was one of the seven instead of me… things probably would've turned out better during the war.

"Hey, are you okay?" Damn him, he's way too good at reading emotions! "I'm fine." I say, voice a bit snappier then it should've been. Samson flinches back lightly, "Okay, if you say it so."

I turn around and look towards a bronze hulking mass that vaguely looks like a giant man. Thinking back on Percy's tale of the quest, I realize what that must be.

"Let's go find Percy and Nico."

* * *

"Gods, this thing is _huge."_

Samson and I stand before the wreckage of the Talos prototype Percy fought with Zoe and Thalia years ago. _This_ is the monster that killed Nico's sister, the one thing that changed him forever.

Percy and Nico grunt as they work their way inside Talos somewhere, their voices echoing through the body.

We hear a loud bang, and a metal sheet on the automaton's rib-cage falls off. Nico pops his head out, face and hair dripping with sweat. He angrily rips his jacket off and throws it onto the ground.

He drops down, and Percy peeks his head out of the hole, "Look Nico, we couldn't find her back then either. I know it hurts, but she's _lost._ The whole thing was coursing with electricity, she must've… been vaporized."

Nico swivels around and points an angry finger up at Percy, "You couldn't find her because _you_ didn't look hard enough! That quest was on a time limit, ours isn't! I'm not leaving until I find her!"

Percy sighs in frustration and drops down to the ground too, "I'm trying to help you Nico! Bianca wouldn't want you killing yourself like this! She cut off contact for a reason, she went for rebirth for a reason!"

Samson and I glance at each other through the corner of our eyes, an uneasy feeling over comes me. Gods, why do we have to keep it a secret?

I walk over to the arguing boys and try and placate everyone, "Calm down you two! Look, we'll spend the rest of today and tomorrow looking, alright? After that we have to move one. We _do_ have a time limit Nico, people right now are suffering and we're the only ones who can cure them."

Nico growls and angrily pushes past me, "Whatever!" He starts climbing back up into Talos before looking back and glaring at us, "Gonna help or what?! Get moving!"

He snaps angrily at us before disappearing back inside Talos. I sigh despondently, he's regressing back into his previous self. He was making such good progress, opening up and regaining his cheery attitude. Hades, he even got a new sister!

I frown to myself, but of course she's too busy already. Hazel's out in New Rome with Frank, both working hard with Reyna to fix everything after Gaea. I can't hate her, she's busy with important responsibilities.

It's a shame she can't be a kid; Camp Jupiter raises soldiers, not people. That's why Jason left, it's an army, not a home. (Is Camp Half Blood really any better?)

Percy sighs in frustration and rakes his hand through his dry hair. Lucky him, Poseidon's demigods can handle heat like Cyclops's, "I'm going to go help him look. Don't worry Annabeth, I'll try and get through to him."

I kiss him on his cheek and pat his arm, "Thank you. Good luck and stay safe! I don't want to drag your injured but through a junkyard because you couldn't watch your footing!"

He gives me a goofy grin, "Please, it's me we're talking about! Do you really think I'd trip?"

I deadpan at him, "Yes."

Percy smiles and gives me a finger salute before climbing back inside Talos after Nico.

Samson gives me a half smile, "Gods you two are sweet. He's a good kid. Scares the immortal life out of me, but a good kid."

"He scares you? What for? He wouldn't hurt a butterfly!"

"Have you seen him, felt his aura?! I almost can't tell the difference between him and Poseidon, and Percy's only a demigod! If he ever turned, I fear the whole Olympian council would be destroyed."

I open my mouth to argue, but my thoughts turn back to my time with him in Tartarus. The time when he overpowered Akhlys, a freaking _Protogenoi,_ and forced her to flee by reversing her own poison back at her!

If Samson can sense Percy's power, then no wonder he thought Percy was Poseidon when they first met. Gods, is Percy _really_ that powerful and intimidating that an immortal is afraid of him? My answer most certainly is _yes._

"Look, Percy's a great man, honorable and chivalrous. He's-he's not dark or evil, okay? Just… let him be, we've been through a lot together. Out of anyone in this world, Percy _needs_ his break."

Samson looks at me thoughtfully, "…You love him, don't you?"

"With all my heart," I look around, trying to spot someone that might hear me, "I think-no, I _know_ he's the one."

My brother's eyes sparkle, and a small smile works its way onto his face, "Good, if he makes you happy then that's that. I'm going to go back and get the van, we're here for a few days so having home base close is better then walking back to it constantly."

"Agreed, I'm just glad your mobile home is actually a mobile palace!"

* * *

Day one of our search came by quickly, everyone was feisty with the blaring desert heat beat down on us the whole time. Nico and Percy have been snapping at each other constantly, their arguments slowly descending into chaos.

At first Nico was just mad about our lack of progress, but that slowly shifted over into thinly veiled insults at Percy. Small jabs about his failure to keep his word during the quest that have a heavy impact on Percy.

No matter how much I try, Nico refuses to speak or listen to me. He's entirely content with being angry at the entire world it seems.

The day shifted to night, and the temperature took a complete one hundred and eighty degree turn. Blistering heat turned into biting cold, but Nico still continued looking, even at the expense of his health.

Thankfully my brother stayed out there with Nico, using his magic to create a ball of light that illuminated as well as heated the surrounding area.

Even though Nico's state seemed to be constantly angry, I could tell he appreciated Samson's help, even if he wasn't helping Nico look.

They've been bonding very well over the past week and a half on our trip. I was worried Samson was homophobic or something awful like that, but my worries were put to rest. He's just ignorant, and I'm hoping he took my advice about learning from Nico.

Maybe that talk would distract Nico?

Percy fell asleep around midnight, he excused himself to our room while I chose to wait for the other boys in Samson's living room. Call me selfish, but I _do not_ like the cold.

It was around three in the morning when Nico and Samson returned from their expedition empty handed. Nico's eyes were hard, scary even. But his fresh tears of frustration paint him in a completely different picture.

He stormed past me without so much of a word and slammed the door to his room shut. Samson only could stare at him sadly as he watches the entire drama play out.

"He's hurting inside, _badly._ The loss of his sister weighs heavy on him, I doubt he'll ever fully move on without finding the body."

"Is there… can we tell him yet?"

"We can't share it, you know what'll happen if Laila and I are wrong and we can't succeed. Even if I wanted to, my contract with Hades prevents me. It… has to remain a secret until we either fail or complete our contract."

I rub my tired eyes and groan loudly to myself. Why does this hole situation have to be so godsdamn messed up!

"I guess… we just have to continue forward and let him be for now. Just keep working hard, if you can pull it off Nico's happiness can properly return."

"Well, I've already violated one law of nature becoming immortal, why not do it again with someone else? Anyways, I'm going to bed. Tomorrow is the last day to look before we head back on the road."

I wish him a goodnight and head back to my room as well, tomorrow will either go off fine or end in disaster. Hoping for the first one, a good day on this quest sounds absolutely fantastic.

* * *

Of course, I had to be wrong.

The day already started off wrong with Nico and Percy arguing loudly, both of them in the others face as they practically _scream_ their heads off.

"SHE WAS MY SISTER, OF COURSE I LOVE HER!"

"THEN STOP ACTING LIKE A BRAT AND TRAMPLING ALL OVER HER MEMORY! SHE GAVE HER LIFE FOR YOU, SHE SACRIFICED HERSELF SO YOU COULD MOVE FORWARD!"

Nico pushes Percy back roughly, causing Percy to slam into a decorative pillar with an ornate jug on it. The jug falls over and Samson barely catches it before it breaks.

He glares harshly at the two arguing demigods, "That's it, out of my house. NOW! You two can argue outside, I'm not letting my place get trashed because you can't keep a lid on it!"

Nico growls fiercely at my brother, and the shadows beneath his feet suck my brother in like he's falling down a hole in the ground or something, Samson barely manages a yelp before he disappears entirely into the shadow

"NICO," I scream at him, "What the Hades is wrong with you?! Bring him back!"

I flinch when his eyes turn to me. I've… never seen that look on him before. The temperature in the room cools down significantly, I can even see my breath as I start to shiver.

For a second, it felt like I was… dying. Would he have, though? Could Nico really kill me in frustrated anger? The answer terrifies me, because right now, I think he could.

Nico's back to screaming at Percy, pushing him with every other word, "She didn't die for me, she died for YOU! If you hadn't been so weak, if that stupid Moon Goddess hadn't poisoned her mind, I'd still have my sister! She was twelve, we were children! This shouldn't have happened!"

Percy's face becomes thunderous, the walls shaking as a heavy earthquake rattles the entire palace.

"PERCY, NICO, STOP THIS RIGHT NOW!" I scream for them to listen, and thankfully they do. The temperature rises to normal, and the earthquake stops shaking my brother's home.

Both boys glare at each other one last time before retreating outside to continue the search. The shadow mark on the floor where my brother was widens, and he comes flying out if it and lands hard on his back.

I race over to him and help him back to his feet, "Okay, now I know. Do _not_ piss off Nico."

I roll my eyes and put him back on the couch, "You okay? I… haven't seen Nico use his shadow powers on another person like that before, for all I know he sent you to the underworld!"

"He uh… did, actually. I landed in Hades court, almost got myself torn up by a legion of angry undead. Thankfully Hades got mad and sent me back after I accidentally destroyed a bunch of stuff trying to escape."

"O…kay then. Look, Percy and Nico are half a second away from killing each other. We _have_ to go out there and make sure no one dies."

He groans comically and gets off the couch, "Fine, but when they fight _you_ get to be the one to break it up! I'm not dealing with that kid again!"

"Whatever drama queen let's go."

We make our way back outside, and of course the two demigods are arguing like children. Both sneering insults and petty remarks at each other as they clamper around the area of Talos having decided to check and see if Bianca's body was ejected and landed somewhere.

My attempts at getting them to stop being little assholes doesn't get very far, both idiots too angry to listen to my voice of reason instead of their inner anger. This then causes me to get angry which only makes everyone more frustrated all the while the stupid sun seems to want to burn my fucking clothes off!

"APOLLO," I scream into the air, "TURN THE FUCKING SUN DOWN!" Nothing happens, but a small bit of cloud does cover the sun a bit. Good, at least _someone_ is listening!

The next several hours continues with the same lack of progress, everyone but my brother in completely foul moods as we vainly search for Bianca's corpse.

It was midday when Nico cries out in joy, he rips a silver hairclip from under a sheet of metal and holds it in the air. The clip shimmers and turns into a long silver bow, the weapon being intact save for the missing draw string.

"HAHA! I told you Percy, look at what I found!"

Nico practically shoves the bow at Percy, who examines the bow with a look of uncertainty on his face.

"Um, Nico? This… this isn't her bow."

Nico's cheerful face drops, the shadows crossing his face seem to darken just as his mood does as well, "…What do you mean. Explain."

Percy sighs and shows him the detailing on the weapon, "Her bow wasn't re-curved like this, it was thin and long like a Longbow." He hands the weapon back to Nico, the bow transforming itself sadly back into its clip form.

"I'm pretty certain this is the bow Bianca found when we were here last, but she left it behind because it's here for a reason. Nico, I'm sorry, but I don't think we're ever going to find her body."

Nico's head drops, his hands clutching tightly in fists as small tears drop onto the hard ground beneath him.

Percy steps forward and wraps Nico in a tight embrace, small tears too falling from his eyes.

Suddenly, Nico's body starts shaking. Percy goes to ask what's wrong but is blown back by a surprisingly powerful sucker punch!

I begin to yell at Nico but stop when a large pile of trash next to me explodes in a shower of debris. I roll away from a huge chunk of metal and parry an attack with my sword. I lash out with a leg and try to swipe my opponent to their feet, but instead my kick only gongs off their leg.

My eyes widen as I take in the appearance of my foe. From head to toe, the entire body is a bronze automaton decorated with Greek armor and symbology.

The bronze head tilts to the side, and they kick me in the gut and send me flying far away. I cough out a small splotch of blood and angrily yell at Percy and Nico, "HEY! WE'RE UNDER ATTACK!"

This was the moment however, that the two of them decided they needed to fight each other instead of the thing that is trying to kill me. Bronze and Stygian meet as Percy and Nico duel savagely, their attacks heavy and full of emotion.

"YOU LIED TO ME! I THOUGHT I COULD TRUST YOU!"

"I WAS A KID NICO! WHAT WAS I SUPPOSED TO DO?! WE WERE _ALL_ KIDS!"

I roll away from a stomp that surely would've squashed my head open and swing my sword and catch the automaton in the leg, only for my sword to barely get anywhere deep and get stuck in it.

The metal spartan grabs me by my hair and lifts me into the air. I scream in pain and grit my teeth. The robot prepares to stab me when I quickly remember what I still have.

Mori's ring!

I run the ring with my finger and a long silver cutlass forms in my hand. I swing it at the automaton and surprisingly the blade glides through it as though it were a sheet a paper. The bisected robot falls in twine and releases my hair.

"SAMSON," I yell as I turn around and face my brother, "Why the _hell_ didn't you help me!?"

Him fending off three robot Spartans with his cane whip is the answer why. I rip my sword from the defeated Spartans leg and hurl it at one Samson is dueling, the blade pierces the robots face and it crumples to the ground as sparks flicker out of the hole.

I run towards my brother, but crumple as the ground begins shaking violently. Percy and Nico's fight has grown in intensity, their duel shaking the earth and crumbling mountains of trash down.

Samson whips his serrated blade through a Spartan and blasts the other one far away with a magic spell. He runs over to me, almost tripping over his feet as the earth shakes and helps me back to my feet.

"Annabeth! We need to get out of here! I think the junkyard is after us because Nico has the hair clip, we have to get them to stop!"

"Nico, Percy," I scream pass my brother, "Stop this now! We're _all_ going to die if we stay here!"

More and more piles of trash explode as an army's worth of automatons in varying states of disrepair claw their way free and slowly form a horde that lumbers after us.

Percy and Nico continue their fight unabated as Samson and I perform a fighting retreat back to his van, fending off a dozen highly skilled Spartan automatons.

"I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU WERE, YOU'RE PERCY JACKSON! YOU COULD'VE SAVED HER!"

"I COULD BARELY SAVE MYSELF! DAMMIT NICO JUST LISTEN TO ME, BIANCA WOULDN'T WANT THIS!"

"WHAT DO YOU KNOW?! YOU BARELY EVEN KNEW HER, SHE WAS MY SISTER!"

Samson growls angrily and clenches his fist, swirling silver energy surrounds his fist and he punches it straight into the ground. A fissure cracks in the ground and travels towards Nico and Percy where a blast of energy explodes under their feet and throws them and their weapons away from each other.

"You two, back here! **NOW.** We fight later!" They still ignore me and continue beating each other with their bare fists. Nico punches Percy roughly across the face and wraps his hands around Percy's throat.

My heart drops, but Nico releases his hands and clampers back into the shade of a large overhanging piece of metal. Percy rises and gazes sternly at Nico, however his voice has lost its previous bite, becoming closer a desperate plea then anything else, "I was- I was a kid too! I'm sorry I couldn't save her, I never should've taken the responsibility, I just… why did you have to look up to me so much?"

Nico glares back at Percy, the murderous look having long since left his eyes. Instead replaced with a gaze of anger, for Percy _and_ for himself.

"Of course I looked up to you, you were perfect! I liked you! I was… I was desperate for someone, _anyone_ to help me get my sister back!"

Slowly the shadows around him darken, his body vanishing within as he prepares to shadow travel. Percy cries out and runs towards him, but he was too slow.

Only Nico's head and hand remain, he looks down angrily at the clip in his hand, "…I never should've trusted you."

Now only his hand remains, still clenching the clip before he drops it unceremoniously to the ground just as Percy arrives.

He cries out desperately for Nico to stay, raving out apologies and pleas for forgiveness.

It doesn't work. Nico's long gone by now. He grabs the clip in his hands gently, staring longingly into it as he no doubt recounts the memories of his past failures, stewing in a vat of self-pity.

"PERCY! WE'RE LEAVING!"

His head snaps up and his instincts return. He digs Riptide from his pocket and starts slashing through creaking automatons left and right. He fights his way to the robot I stabbed and rips my sword from its head.

He duel-wields his way through ranks of enemies until he clears a path back to us. Samson covers our retreat with a wall of shimmering silver light that prevents the enemies from advancing passed it. They beat down on it hard, and we use the chance to race back into his Van.

Samson throws himself into the driver's seat and shifts gears dramatically. I follow Percy back inside Samson's home and comfort him as he crashes onto the couch, a look of agony on his face as he throws the clip onto the table.

I gently rub his back as he cups his head with his hands. After a minute, he turns to me, eyes wet with unshed tears as he asks me a heartbreaking question.

"Annabeth am I a bad person?" His voice is quiet, unnaturally smooth, and I feel a hole grow in my stomach. After all these years, he still questions himself. After all the hardships and victories, he still has a hard time valuing his own worth.

I kiss his cheek and hold him close to me, "Perseus Jackson, you are an amazing individual with a heart of gold. You're not a bad person, you're the best of all of us."

He leans his head onto my shoulder and mumbles a quiet thanks. I giggle at the sound of it, he almost sounded like a flustered little kid who got their first compliment from their crush.

We lay in one another's embrace as Samson calls back the all clear to us. We're safe for now, but we still have to continue on… without Nico.

Cabin Nine is still cursed, and we haven't even gotten to the Garden of the Hesperides yet. Percy and I lay with each other silently, our presence being all that we need to calm our frazzled nerves and regain our senses.

Still, we both worry about Nico. He's… fully regressed now, completely cutting himself off. I hope he goes to Will, the Son of Apollo ironically being the last light in Nico's life now.

I close my eyes and nuzzle up with Percy, mentally preparing myself for the coming strife.

* * *

Days have gone by, not one word from Nico. Even an IM couldn't find him, Iris saying Nico's presence is out of her reach. That narrows his location down to a few places, the most likely one being Alaska. Too bad the place is ginormous, he could be anywhere in the country sized state.

Our now group of three have continued onward, having arrived in San Francisco and made our way up the slopes of the crumpled and destroyed Mount Othrys.

The Roman Army's offensive was swift and deadly. The pillars and architecture of the Titans now thoroughly demolished, scattered weapons and other siege equipment lie in ruin as the Romans left quickly after the siege. So quickly they left precious war gear behind.

We follow a split in the path and find ourselves walking through a foggy forest. We made our camp in a nice secluded spot to pass the time, making small talk as we try and cheer each other up.

The sun quickly went down towards the horizon, and we continued our march towards the Garden. After a few more minutes of traveling through the foggy forest, we found a break in the fog and followed the path until it leads us into the beautiful grove the Hesperides call home.

A forlorn look form on Percy's face. Right, this is where he lost Zoe to Atlas. I gently squeeze his hand, to which he reciprocates. He smiles warmly at me, and our party of three fully enters the Hesperides Garden.

Ladon, the giant serpent with a thousand snake heads hisses warningly at us as we enter, his body wrapped around an even more massive tree with tantalizingly beautiful Golden Apples hanging from the branches.

I smack my lips hungrily, gods they look so _good._ But Samson taps my shoulder and gives me a pointed look. I blush flustered and regain control of my senses.

Samson looks around and scowls, "Alright, stop hiding and come out here!"

The air in front of us shimmers and puffs, fog flying away as four beautiful women appear. Each dressed similarly in beautiful chitons, their skin dark and their hair a silky black. Their eyes are an earth volcanic black, and even though they scowl at us distastefully they're _gorgeous._

The center Hesperid steps forward and places her hand sassily on her hip as she leers at Samson.

"What are you doing back here?! You should know you were banned after what you did!"

He waves her off smoothly wraps an arm around her shoulders, "Oh come on Aegle, that was ages ago! Listen, I'm just here for my jacket. I just need one of you to grab it from under Ladon and I'll be out of your hair!"

That's… new. Is… Samson trying to woo Aegle? Whatever he's doing, it seems to be working. The Hesperid raises an eyebrow but smile coyly and grabs Samson's head and crashes her lips against his. They make out for a solid minute before she lets him go and pushes my brother away.

He blinks his eyes rapidly, trying to clear himself of his confusion, "That… was different then last time."

Aegle grins wickedly and giggles in perfect sync with her sisters, "last time you were just a boy. But now, now you are a man. Sadly, I will not help you."

"What? Oh, come on, why not?" Samson whines. Aegle ignores his tone and pretends to file her nails like an angry girlfriend or something, "Athena had me bury it under the tree, and I'm _never_ doing that again! Do you know where Ladon defecates? I'll give you a hint, it's where he's always at."

Samson groans, but Aegle continues, "Besides, wouldn't you rather spend some time with your nieces?"

"Wait what?"

Suddenly a dozen young women burst from the ground and wrap up Samson in a giant ball of giggling preteens. Percy and I stifle a giggle as Samson angrily cries out from the ball of surprisingly strong Nymphs.

"Let me go dammit! Hey! Who touched my ass?! Whatever just let me go already!"

The Nymphs respond by whining and clutching him tighter, "Aww do you have to Uncle Samson?"

"Yeah do you _really?_ Stay with us!"

"Don't go, pleeeeease!"

"I like your butt! It's so soft!"

"Come on Uncle! Tell us about our daddy!"

"Yeah we want to know about our daddy Thomas!"

Samson stops struggling and groans loudly at the sky, "For the love of- really Thomas? You got the fucking Hesperides knocked up?!"

The Hesperides giggle like Japanese school girls and gave lovingly at the night sky, one of them speaking up and recounting my other brothers love affair, "Ahhh, he was truly a man. Never have we been so pleased before, we shall cherish and miss him forever!"

Another continues after her, "He was much better then that jerk Heracles! At least Thomas knew how to use his manhood!"

I cover my mouth and gag as the Hesperides rattle off about all the things Thomas did to them with the apparent _orgy_ they had! Gods this is so gross, why the Hades are all of the Nymphs here imagining their mothers' orgy so fondly!

"Oh my Gods, please stop talking about your damn orgy!"

Aegle gasps accusingly at me, even comically pointing a finger at me, "How dare you! The story of one's inception is _beautiful!_ Why our father would tell us ever winter solstice of when he impregnated our mother, it is always a wonderful story!"

Percy groans and I gag one again, thankful my mother never had sex and _definitely_ grateful she never shared stories with me!

Samson manages to free his head a little from the Nymph ball of his nieces and addresses Aegle, "Look, do you still have that vial I left here last time?"

"You mean the vial you threw into our forest like a disgusting slob? Then yes, I do still have it!"

Aegle reaches into her chiton and pulls out a small ornate vial containing a small amount of clear liquid. She hands it to me and then reaches into her chiton and pulls out a slab of raw meat, blood still dripping from it.

She gives me the meat and I'm left dumbfounded "Uuuuuhhh… what the hell?"

"It's meat dear, it rewards to be prepared. Just sprinkle the potion on the meat and feed it to Ladon, he'll be knocked right out. Then you can get that stupid jack and leave here, and take our daughters with you too! They shouldn't be locked in our Garden like we are!"

Samson voices a complaint which turns into a heated bickering argument with Aegle. Percy and I wisely chose to leave the crazies be and continue on with our quest. I carefully sprinkle the potion onto the meat, emptying the vial before tossing the drugged meat at the massive guardian.

Ladon's many heads snap like lightning and devour the meat mid-arc in the air, now leaving a single trace of the meat behind.

Percy and I wait for Ladon to pass out like Aegle said he would, but nothing happens. At most only mist of the viper heads blink and sag down, leaving a good number awake yet not fully alert.

"Hey, Aegle," I call out over my shoulder, "How long is this supposed to take?"

She turns around and looks questioningly at Ladon, "Guess there wasn't enough, that or he's developed a tolerance. Oh well, maybe you can fight him then? He looks like he's about to pass out, I say just run around him until he gets winded and takes a nap."

"Thanks," I deadpan, "You're so helpful."

"You're welcome sweetie."

Then she's back to arguing with my brother who's still trapped in a ball of Nymphs, leaving Percy and I to try and fight a sedated legendary dragon that even Hercules couldn't defeat.

Great.

"Girls!" I call out to Samson's nieces, "If you help me trap Ladon I'll let you live with your uncle!"

They all simultaneously ooh and plant their hands to the ground. The dirt beneath Ladon shifts and rumbles until thick vines burst from the ground and start ensnaring Ladon weakly tugs on them in response.

The remaining awake snake heads hiss tiredly, biting the vines and chewing through them as the acid in their fangs start burning the vines.

One of the Nymphs wince and starts hurriedly pushing Percy and I along with her words, "Hurry up you clod, we can't hold him forever! The thing's under ladon's left paw!"

More vines burst from the ground and wrap around all of the heads, a powerful tug of war taking place as the Nymphs use their impressive might to wrangle down the sleepy Son of Typhon.

Percy and I quickly race forward, I use my sword to start digging at a patch of ground beneath Ladon's foot as Percy watches Ladon to ensure none of the struggling heads break free and try to attack us.

The vines holding Ladon down start groaning as they tear, and I quickly pick up the pace with my digging.

"Uh, Annabeth?"

"I'm almost there!"

Something Silver flashes in my eye, and I start digging frantically. Just as I'm about to remove the armor, Ladon's foot shifts and stomps down on it! I growl and swipe his toes with my sword, only for the blade to bounce right off the scales.

Something snaps behind me, "Annabeth!"

"Hold on dammit!"

I grab the jacket and start pulling with all my might, slowly sliding the jacket out inch by inch. More snapping hits my ears, "We need to go Wise Girl!"

I grit my teeth and pull even harder, my arms screaming as I push myself past my limits, "Almost! Got it!"

"Annabeth look out!"

I pull the jacket out just as a newly freed head whips around and goes to strike me, only to sink its fangs into Percy's forearm.

He grunts and hisses in pain, grabbing the snake head and prying it from his arm. Venom and blood seep from the small holes in his arm, sweat pours down his face as he grins at me smoothly.

"Looks like… I took the bullet…"

And then he collapses into my arms. It takes a mere precious moment for me to realize I'm still in peril!

I grab the jacket and Percy and bolt away from Ladon, hot tears stinging my eyes as I race pass the Hesperides with Percy and collapse next to the exhausted pile of Nymphs.

Samson senses my sorrow and physically throws the Nymphs off of him, they cry indignantly as he rushes to my side and stares down at Percy in worry.

Percy… my Seaweed Brain shivers as his skin turns a deathly pale, eyes glossed over as his breath weakens.

I turn to my brother, _pleading_ to him for help, "Samson, Samson _please_ you have to help!"

"I-I-I don't know what to do?! He's- I've never cured poison! I don't- I… don't know…"

Sobs wrack my body as I hold Percy close, desperately crying for someone, anyone to get water, knowing that it won't help. Ladon's bite is legendary, they say no one can cure it.

All I can do is hold Percy close and pray for a miracle.

* * *

…Only I don't count on miracles!

I take Percy over my shoulder and barrel down the forest path with him, sprinting down the mountainside and continuing back towards the Van.

Samson cries out at me, asking me what I'm doing. I ignore him and continue on with my mission. Fresh water won't help, but the Ocean will. If salt water can't heal him then I know Poseidon will! He's going to help me, or I'll kick the doors to his palace down and kick his ass if he won't!

Percy will _not_ die here today!

An hour's hike up the mountain turned into a few minutes sprint back down, momentum and careful footing allowing me to travel like a Hunter. Samson follows close behind me, still calling out for me to wait.

Fuck him! I'm going to save Percy!

I slam into the door, Percy groaning from the impact and weakly complaining. Throwing the door open I clamper inside and toss Percy onto the couch, passing by a confused twelve-year-old girl with black hair and skull pajamas shoving cereal into her mouth.

Samson pokes his head through the drapes, panting as I race around the little girl in the kitchen and filling up a large pot full of cold water, "What," He pants, "The hell are you doing?!"

I growl and rush over to Percy and dump the cold water all over him. He cries out in shock, but the color of his skin slowly turns back to its' natural tan.

"Agh! Annabeth what the hell?!"

"Shut up Percy I'm saving you!"

I turn my thunderous eyes back to my brother who flinches under my hard gaze, "You. Ocean. Now."

He slinks back through the drapes and I hear the Van starting followed by the screeching of tires, women yelling in shock, and a cat yowling like it just got run over.

Percy groans and throws himself back onto the couch, "Ugh, I am _never_ getting poisoned again without a cup of salt water in my pockets!"

I kneel down next to him and start feeding the leftover water in the pot into his mouth. Percy slurps it down greedily and turns back to me, his eyes begging for more.

I roll my eyes and walk back to the kitchen, passing by the confused girl who's still loudly munching on her cereal.

…Wait, what?

The girl flinches as I spin around and stare at her in shock. She looks at me like I'm weird as my mouth hangs open.

"Wh-what?! How the… it _worked?!"_

The girl shyly waves at me, "H-hi miss, I like your hair. What's your name?"

"A-annabeth. Who… are you?"

"Oh me? I'm uh, Bianca. Bianca Di Angelo!"

Percy perks up from the couch, "Wait who?"

He scans around the room, and his eyes widen as he meets Bianca's. She blushes and waves shyly at him, Percy still in shock as his mouth opens and closes like a door. It takes a few moments, but he finally makes a sound.

Unfortunately it's a _very_ girly scream that can be heard for miles.


	37. Chapter 37

**A/N: So, Bianca's back, and just when Nico's fucking off to Alaska too. Here we'll see** _ **how**_ **Bianca came back, as well as what Samson and Laila was doing with the body in the coffin. Then we'll learn** _ **all**_ **about what they were up to with Hades hiring them. A slight change from canon here, but it's fanfiction. That's what you're supposed to do.**

* * *

 _With Annabeth, spring 2011_

"Percy shut the fuck up!"

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

I slap him hard across the face while Bianca watches the whole thing, munching on her cereal and watching me kick Percy's ass.

She comes around my side and stands over Percy who is _still_ screaming like a maniac. Gods she looks adorable in her skeleton pajamas. She pokes his side with her spoon and swallows a big mouthful of cereal.

"Hi Percy, what's wrong? You uh, keep screaming."

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

"…Percy?"

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

"PERCY!"

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

She punches him across the face and he _finally_ stops screaming. Percy rambles out randomly, pointing between Bianca and I.

"I-she-you-alive!?"

"Uhm, yeah? It's a… long story. So… surprise? I'm back but I shouldn't be. Yay!"

She does a little jazz hand move with her spoon hand, the other still cradling a bowl of cereal. Percy's mouth opens and closes like a fish.

"Annabeth, can you tell me what the _fuck_ is going on?!"

"Language Percy! We have a child here!"

"Hey! I'm not a kid!"

"Look, we need to get you healed first and I can explain everything. You're still poisoned remember?"

Bianca gasps and swallows another bite of her cereal, "You're poisoned?! Oh my gosh are you okay?!"

Percy flinches back into the sofa as she gets closer, causing her to frown and pout. Percy averts his eyes away and frowns, eye brows scrunched in displeasure.

I grab Bianca's shoulder and start leading her to the drapes of Samson's Van, "Come on Bianca, let's go meet Samson."

I glance back at Percy, my eyes telling him 'we'll talk about this later.'

We pass through the drapes leading into the Van and Bianca gasps as she realizes we went from being in a living room to being in the front area of a vehicle.

"Wow!" She says, and Samson glances at us in the mirror. His eyes widen and the van swerves violently into oncoming traffic.

Bianca screams as Samson swerves back onto the right side of the road.

"Samson, what the HELL!"

He cowers in his seat and nervously taps the steering wheel, "Sssssorry."

I cough into my fist and present Bianca to Samson, "Anyways look, you brought the dead back."

Samson glances back at us excitedly, even bouncing in his seat as Bianca lauds at him, bouncing on her feet just like my brother.

"Hi mister! I'm Bianca, thank you for violating the laws of nature to rip me from Elysium and throw me into the body I had died in earlier after rejuvenating the mummified corpse back into a normal form during the crisis when Thanatos was missing therefore making this a legal act because it was chaos and no one could really punish you since lots of people have already been resurrected and suffered no repercussions!"

Samson and I look at Bianca weird as she smiles a big ol' grin at him, "Did she… was that one take?"

"Uh, yeah. Looks like it, anyways, tada. How close are we to the sea now?"

"Just a few more minutes and we'll be there."

Bianca sits in the passenger seat and buckles in like the cute responsible little adult she is.

"Why're we going to the sea?"

"Percy's a Son of Poseidon. Water, especially salt water will heal him. He's been poisoned, but even just tap water helped him fend off the poison. Sea water should push him over the edge and cure him completely."

"Phew, that's good! Hey, changing the subject, but where's Nico? Laila told me he was here before she went to her room to watch cooking shows while eating ice cream. She gave me these pj's though… they're really comfy."

"SHE LEFT YOU ALONE!?" Samson screams, and Bianca covers her ears from the volume. He clears his throat and continues the conversation, "Anyways, Nico he's… left somewhere. Percy and him had a disagreement, Nico shadow traveled somewhere and we haven't been able to get back in contact with him."

"Oh," Her voice is plain, her happy expression turning sour and far too neutral for a twelve-year-old, "I… see…"

The mood in the van turns gloomy, the temperature even seeming to drop around us. Bianca stews forlornly in her seat as she gazes down in her lap, her eyes going distant as she becomes lost in her depressive thoughts.

"Hey, Bianca? Let's go hang out with Percy for a minute okay?"

She nods and walks with me back into the living room. Percy perks up when we walk in and takes in Bianca's dark aura.

He gives me a questioning look and I point my head at Bianca. Percy sits up against the arm rest on the couch and makes some room for Bianca, "Hey, seats open. Let's talk for a minute while we drive to the beach."

She smiles lightly and makes herself comfortable on the couch across from Percy. I sit down on the loveseat and let myself get comfortable as Percy and Bianca reconnect after all their years apart.

I lean back in my seat and think back to when Samson first showed me what was inside the coffin, when he showed me just how amazing in all the wrong ways he is.

* * *

 _Days ago_

Her body is still, skin an unearthly white and her hair contrasts it with its true black color. Her hands are crossed in her lap over torn black clothes; in a morbid way she's beautiful, almost reminding me of a still life piece in a gallery or something.

Samson has his hands on the table as he leans over the coffin, his shoulders are tensed and his gaze is hard in thought as he stares at the corpse of the young girl on the table before us.

"Samson…who… who is she? _Why_ do you have the corpse of a little girl?!"

He huffs in frustration and combs his fingers through his hair, "This… is a project I've been forced into. Annabeth, this here is the remains of Bianca di Angelo, and I've been tasked by Hades to help Laila bring her back to life."

My eyes go wide and I scan over the body again, taking in more details then before. Soft features, face dotted with freckles, small pointy nose with a mostly unnoticeable blemish hidden just behind her nostril, an average girly face with smooth looking.

She looks _just_ like Nico if he were a girl. This really is his sister, his currently deceased sister that should've been far into reincarnation according to all things Nico.

"How does-how is she _here_ right now?! Bianca died years ago, and her spirit should've long since been dipped in the river Lethe and sent on her way rebirth! She looks like she's still alive right now if it wasn't for the fact that she's as still as a statue!"

"Yeeaaaaahhhh… She's uh, not dead anymore."

"…What? Explain!"

"Look I-," He sighs heavily runs his hands down the side of his face frustratedly, "Months ago during the war against Gaea Thanatos was chained up and nobody could die right? Well, Hades used the tumultuous time and hired Laila to recover Bianca's body and rejuvenate it back to a state suitable for possession. Because Bianca's spirit had a valid body in the mortal world, it was automatically forced into her body as the Doors of Death were open. That's why Nico couldn't find his sister when he went to search for her, ending up saving Hazel instead."

I look back to the body and reach out and touch it hesitantly. She's cold, _deathly_ cold.

"Samson, I don't think she's… here. Feel her skin, she's like a corpse."

"Yeah, according to Laila her spirit hasn't properly taken control of the body, essentially leaving her in a constant state of dying. That's why she's being stored in this coffin, Stygian iron is counteracting the speed of her spirit dying as Children of Hades receive a regeneration boon like Percy does with water. But this leaves it moot point, she's trapped in a constant battle of life and death, but that's where I come in."

I raise an eyebrow as my brother stands a little taller, looks like stroking his ego helps him quite a bit with his frustrations.

Gods is he so hauntingly familiar to mom.

"Hades… hired/forced me to help Laila in bringing Bianca back for good, Alecto had me sign a contract ensuring my success or I'd be thrown into Tartarus for illegal immortality. I've come up with a potential solution to ensure she'll be back in her body forever onwards, but it's incredibly risky. There's a good chance she'll die and her spirit will be trapped in Elysium once again. Annabeth, you know that we can't…"

"…We can't tell Nico… If he saw what you're doing, what his _father_ is doing, he'd try and put a stop to it. He's a Child of the Dead, and this is a violation of death. If you fail to bring Bianca back and he knows, I think there's a good chance he'll explode and end up seriously hurting himself."

I put my fist to my chin and think over the situation as a whole. This here is an opportunity for Nico to regain the one person he misses the most, but there's a very high chance Bianca will be within his reach yet die anyways. If he just… doesn't know and Bianca dies, nothing will change. But if he _does_ and she dies, I don't think he'll ever be the same again.

"We can't tell him, not ever. Not even Percy, I don't think he could handle it if she dies again. Samson, you _must_ help her. If you can bring her back for Percy and Nico, I'll forever be grateful towards you."

He nods once, face determined, "I promise I'll succeed."

* * *

 _Back to the present_

I'm pulled out of my flashback by the cheerful giggling laughter of Bianca _and_ Percy. Gods they both laugh like little girls. Bianca has an excuse, Percy doesn't.

I lean back in my seat and watch them in content, feeling pleased that Percy's so happy. Even with his generally cheerful attitude, Percy's eyes have always held a darkness in them for a long time since the Titan War.

It's like he's had a heavy weight on his shoulders since he was just a boy. But now, now he's genuinely happy to have an old friend back.

Percy's bedazzling Bianca with the tale of his time in Rome all the way to the defeat of Gaea, recounting tales with splendor and glamour; Bianca stares at Percy as he boasts about the adventure, eyes wide with stars in them as she's completely enamored with the story.

A smile forms on my face and I can't help but feel elated.

This is nice, everyone's happy! Well… we're still missing our _other_ Child of Hades. I hope Nico comes back soon, he _needs_ this reunion. His happiness has been and sporadic and swift. A proper sister is what he needs now, and Bianca can fill that void far greater then Hazel can and likely ever will given their current relationship.

"Tell me about Lupa! She sounds cool!"

"Oh man she really is! She's a _huge_ wolf with the softest fur ever. She may seem scary but if you're strong she'll love you like a mother."

"What if you aren't strong? Or you're missing your legs or something?"

"Let's uh… skip past that for now… Anyways you're cool too! You used your bow like a pro!"

She blushes and scratches the back of her head sheepishly, "Yeah-uh… I'm… not… good anymore. I don't have Artemis's blessing anymore, so I can't fight worth nothing anymore."

"Oh… well who cares! I'll teach you how to fight!"

"N-no that's okay! I'm actually going to be Samson's apprentice! Daddy talked with me when I was in a coma, he said Samson's going to be my mentor from here on out. He said Samson will take care of me and make sure I'm safe forever!"

That's… new. Samson's going to freak now that he's got an apprentice without knowing about it. He'll be fine, I'm certain he'll love Bianca.

Speaking of which. Samson pokes his head through drapes, "Hey we're at the beach. Let's get aqualad into the water before he dies of poison."

"Hey! I'm _at least_ Aquaman!"

Bianca looks around at us confused, "Wait, what's Aquaman?"

We ignore the question and Bianca helps me drag Percy towards the front. Samson takes over for Bianca and tells her to put actual clothes on. She disappears back into his home and we drag Percy outside and across the sand.

Samson and I toss Percy into the waves unceremoniously. He plops into the water and floats on the surface, a big smile on his face as he sighs happily.

"Ahhhhh, that's the stuff!"

Samson drove his van onto the beach, people point at us but most of the fathers on the beach whistle appreciatively at the van. I can't blame them; Volkswagen Buses are a cool vehicle and my brother has a _very_ nice one.

When it was in the mechanics Samson had them repaint the whole thing. Now it's a blueberry blue with white decals.

My brother puts his hands on his hip and gazes out across the beach, "Hey, you guys want to have a beach episode?"

I look out across the beach. It's gorgeous, the sand is a nice white and the sun is nice and toasty. The beach isn't too crowded, but I'm pretty certain Samson is using the mist to keep people away.

"Yeah, that sounds nice right now."

* * *

As it turns out, Samson's wardrobe has just about every type of clothing for all kinds of bodies. From boys to men, and girls to women he's got everything.

We all got dressed up for a beach fanservice scene and gathered up some towels and what not and set up a nice cozy spot on the beach. Percy's still floating contently on the water, I roll my eyes and toss a bottle of sunscreen at him.

The bottle bonks against his and he cries out indignantly, "What the hey Annabeth?!"

"Shut it Seaweed Brain! Now grab that bottle and help me out, someone's gotta put it on my back!"

He scampers out of the water and Bianca giggles, "He's pretty excited, isn't he?"

"He's a boy, he's just happy he gets to touch me."

"A bit too much if you ask me."

I jab Samson in his ribs and glare at him, "Leave him alone, Percy's a good dork!"

He rolls his eyes and walks past me, throwing a towel down and plopping his rear on hit. Something silver glints in my eye, and I see it's the hair clip Percy threw on the table earlier.

Bianca plops down next to him and looks at the clip curiously, "Oh! That's a Hunters clip! They turn into bows, or at least they should."

I put my towel down next to them and lay down on it. Percy comes to a sliding halt next to me and starts slathering sunscreen all over my back. I punch his leg roughly and he winces, "S-sorry, I'll just… wipe some off."

He scoops up the globs off my back until a _reasonable_ amount is left, then he starts spreading it out. I turn away and look at my brother as he explains the workings and science of a bow to Bianca who listens intently.

Even though I can't see him, I can practically feel him blushing crazily with a nervous smile.

The hair clip in Samson's hand turns into a thin longbow sans its' draw string. He spins it around in his hands, examining it while angling it so Bianca can see. He runs his hand along the length of it, light silver energy smoking off his fingers.

"What's that you're doing," Bianca asks, gazing down with curious eyes as Samson runs magic along the bow, "Are you fixing it or something?"

"Partly, there's some weak curse on it and I'm removing it." The bow glows silver suddenly before returning to normal, the metal now much more polished and cleaner than before. Samson takes his finger and takes it from one end of the string notch to the other, a silver string of light following it.

He takes his hand back and the silver light fades, leaving a regular bowstring in its place. The bow turns back into a clip and he hands it to Bianca. Her eyes widen comically, and she gasps as she takes it into her hands, "W-what? Really?! Thank you!"

"Of course. I'll need to find a quiver to enchant for you, but it's better then nothing. Besides, every demigod should be armed with at least three different kinds of weapons."

She places it into her hair and latches herself onto Samson, wrapping him in the biggest hug her little arms can muster. Samson flinches back in surprise but reciprocates with a light hug himself.

Bianca pulls away, eyes puffy with small tears as she sniffles happily. Samson's eyes widen as stutters worriedly, "O-oh fuck! Shit is it still cursed?! Are you okay?!"

"No! No! I'm just happy silly! I was only a Hunter for a few days, but it meant so much to me! I'm just happy to have this bow, it reminds me of my old one!"

Samson sighs in relief and relaxes his shoulders. Bianca wipes the wetness from her eyes and scooches up next to him. He gives her a side-eye glance, but still smiles softly. She yelps as he ruffles her and punches his shoulder as she voices her complaints, only to receive laughter in response.

I chortle at their theatrics, and Percy does the same.

"They're adorable, aren't they, Wise Girl?"

"They are, it's sweet. I'm happy for her, I think she's treating him like an older brother or something. Thankfully she's his kid sister it seems. I'm glad they're getting along, they'll be good for each other."

And that's something I believe wholeheartedly too. Samson is a very neutral person, but I've seen that same forlorn and far off look in his eyes before in others. He's hurting inside. Samson's keeping his pain inside, locked in a box that's slowly seeping into his psyche.

Losing everyone he knew when he was young in the sixties weighs heavy on his mind. All his friends have long since passed away. His brothers all died in his arms and he was ripped from his time and thrown into the modern era.

But Bianca? She's old school just like him. She's an adorable little kid that clearly looks up to him, and he obviously loves having someone to fawn over and take care of.

Maybe he's even treating her like she's his daughter? He is a mature and married individual after all. If that's the case, then perhaps she's seeing him as… a father?

That's actually kind of sweet, they'll be good to one another.

We all relax on the beach for a few more hours, letting the warm and comforting sun wash away our sorrows and fears. And for the time being, we were just people. No worries about life threatening quests, no fears of time limits and lives on the line.

Just… family enjoying our time in the sun. That of course makes it all the more sad when we had to pack up and continue the quest.

At the end of this, we _are_ demigods after all.

* * *

Percy clutches is stomach and groans loudly, his face sleek with sweat as I place a cold damp cloth over his forehead.

I sigh and get up off our bed and close the door to our room. We've been on the road back home for the past few days, and Percy's been sick the entire time.

As it turns out he's still suffering the aftershocks from Ladon's poison. It started only a few minutes after we left the beach, and he's been sick with a fever the entire time after.

Thankfully Samson was to diagnose him with just a fever and feebleness. He isn't dying, but he's sure to be bedridden for a good while. I almost had to physically force Laila to help us out, but the fear of death via dagger to the throat did the work good.

I make my way to the living room and head through the drapes into the van. Bianca's passed out in the seat, and Samson's focused on driving the van on the highway. The sun's heading downwards, night starting to stretch across the sky.

"Hey Annabeth, need something?"

"Sort of. I'm mostly curious about our next course of action. We're heading for the Sea of Monsters and we're without a boat or our resident Son of the Sea. We could ask Lord Poseidon for help, he's got a sweet spot for Percy."

"Let's… not involve the Olympians if we don't have to. I own a wharf out in the Boston Harbor, and if my old friends haven't been killed then my boat should still be there. If not, we'll go with your plan, I'm just not too keen to be involved with the Olympians if I can help it."

Makes sense, we aren't really sure what his relationship is with the Olympian council right now. For all we know he could be blasted to bits by lightning and thrown into Tartarus for good measure.

"You own a boat? What is it, a fishing boat or something?"

"Think a little bigger. Like, _two-hundred_ feet bigger."

"Hera's sake, you have a yacht?! How in the world did you get something that big?!"

"Oh, it's not a yacht, it's a corvette actually. It's a gift from Queen Amphitrite, she gave it to me with a naiad crew as a reward for helping her out with a loose sea serpent she accidentally unleashed on the world."

"…You've received a palace, a vintage magic van and a warship as _gifts?!_ How in the world do so many people like you so much they give you all these things for _free?!"_

"How the Hades am I supposed to know?! These things literally just happen to me, I don't even ask for any of it!"

Bianca groans tiredly and weakly waves her hand in the air, "Mmm… shut up…sleeping…"

Samson rolls his eyes and pulls us off the road and into the parking lot of a small drug store of some backwoods town. He wakes Bianca up and she rubs her tired eyes before getting up and heading back into Samson's house with us. She excuses herself to her room just as Laila passes by her and approaches us, a notepad in her hands and a frown on her face.

"Ugh, we've got a problem nerd. I can't make the cure for seaman's sickness."

"What? You're a witch, potions are supposed to be your specialty!"

She rolls her eyes and spins the notepad around and shows it to us. I read down the list of items, "Hydra's blood, Centaur hoof, Drakon dung, and liquidized goblin liver? Is this what we need to help Percy?"

"Yup, poison from an elder monster like Ladon isn't easily curable. You need rare stuff and these are what we need. Big problem however, the pharmacies that sell this stuff are run by your psycho wife. She controls the flow of magic ingredients in the world, so you're going to have to steal it from her."

Samson sighs deeply and rubs his temples with his hands, "I… see. Where's the nearest pharmacy then?"

Laila's answer is one that makes a pit form in my guts. It has to be _that_ place, the actual worst hive of scum and villainy in the entire continental USA.

"We've gotta go to Chicago."


	38. Chapter 38

**A/N: What's that? Percy's chivalrous ass is still fucked up from being poisoned? Mori runs the pharmaceutical industry and supplies ingredients through a monopoly to aspiring witches across the board? Laila is squatting in Samson's home and refuses to leave? Bianca's an adorable little girl who just wants people to be happy? Yes, that's what's happening.**

* * *

 _With Annabeth, spring 2011_

"Oh gods this place literally smells," I say holding my nose shut with my fingers, "How the hell do people cope living here?"

"They don't, this place is literally awful. Everyone hates it here, that's why they're awful to everyone here. I stopped by here one time for a concert with Mori, saw a man make a grown cyclops cry. You'd think monsters are the worst things here, but really it's just the general attitude of mortals here that somehow is worse then anything else!"

"Chicagoans are a different class of monster entirely, no wonder Mom always tells us to avoid this place entirely."

"Agreed. Even the darkest denizens of Tartarus are wary to come here."

Our crew arrived in Chicago not long ago, Percy's been suffering in our room the entire journey with only me and a reluctant lamia to watch over him. After learning some more from Laila about the magic ingredient industry, we've found out the company known as Gauldur International makes its headquarters in the downtown bay area.

Mori uses the company as a front for her to buy magic ingredient farms across the US and bring them under her command, giving her a monopoly over the potion making business entirely. Any competition is swiftly destroyed either through financial means or just straight up murder, meaning anything and everything must go through her.

It's why during the wars potions were in such a limited supply to the camps, and even years before that. Our enemy was controlling a vital resource the whole time and I know of many demigods who could've been saved from death had the potions available.

Samson pulls the van into the parking lot of a _massive_ glass building. I take in the architecture as we pass by it and I can only whistle appreciatively at the beauty of it. Solid steel framing, massive tinted windows that provide privacy but just a tiny glimpse into the building itself, a modern sleekness and curve to the building only new projects from the past ten years can have, and a small army of lightly armed security forces.

Okay… so the last one is the only one I should really be worried about, but I mean come on!? I've been blessed with a love for architecture, and this place is the cutting edge of modern design and sleekness!

Our van comes to a halt in a farther away parking space and facing the building, giving us a good view of the place as a whole.

Samson and Bianca wait patiently as I bring out my laptop and connect myself into the buildings wifi, accessing their computer network with a program Samson had wrote that should allow me to scan all of their connections with a simple search feature and bring me back keywords that I'm looking for.

Good thing Samson knows how to code computers, but I'm still greatly surprised since he learned about coding when he was young in the 60's!

"Samson, how in the world is the program working?! Not to drag you down, but coding surely has changed over the past fifty years?"

He shrugs his shoulders, "It's not super different now then it was back then, a smart enough person can make it work well enough. Besides, I was tutored by Margaret Hamilton as a birthday present from Mother before the moon landing. I tell you what, she was _way_ ahead of everyone at NASA when it comes to computer genius!"

"Wait, people have landed on the moon?" Bianca asks, her eyes wide in disbelief, "Oh no, Artemis is surely mad about that!"

"She's probably furious since the name for the project was called 'Apollo'."

Bianca smiles and starts chuckling, likely imagining how many jokes Apollo has made to Artemis about the whole thing. Gods I can hear him in my ear already, cracking jokes about him 'finally nailing the moon' before she kicks him in the balls and storms away.

I'm surprised by how effective Samson's program is, a simple connection is all it needs to scan the entire network of wireless connected devices in the entire building. It's almost like using Google, except it brings back searches from files connected to the internet I'm connected to only.

After a minute or two of searching I find what I'm looking for. I use my computers built in printer and print out a copy of the building schematics, hidden rooms and all displayed on the paper for any would be robber to see.

I take the giant sheet of paper and bring it into the parlor room, placing it down on the dining table and scanning over the paper. My brother and Bianca come around my sides and help me search for any of the storage rooms listed that would house magical components.

Bianca points her finger at a room four levels down in the basement, "Is this it right here?"

Samson and I scan over the room and read the fine print label, "That's it, good eye Bianca!"

She blushes at Samson's praise and shyly waves us off, trying to play it cool.

I trace my fingers from the storage room and imagine the journey through the building to it. I unfortunately count no less then twenty obstacles in our way that we might not be able to fight our way through without some of us dying.

Now I wonder… I trace my fingers along the side and follow the ventilation system back to the outside building. Only a couple problems, and those ones are just unscrewing a few things and being very quiet.

Therein lies a problem with this plan. Samson and I can't fit through the vents.

Samson and I meet each other's eyes, both of us coming to the same conclusion as we look down at Bianca who fidgets nervously in her seat.

"…What?"

* * *

"Annabeth, we can't, I won't allow it!"

"Percy's life is on the line! If we don't get these things, he'll die of a fever before we can reach camp!"

"She's just a child, unskilled and still learning! For heavens sake I've only been able to train her a couple times throughout the nights!"

"Samson, she's the only one. Bianca's a Daughter of Hades, you need to have faith in her!"

"These aren't some brainless monsters, they're human beings with minds sharper then most things we've ever fought! Add to that is them likely being controlled or otherwise influenced by Mori's magic, they won't hesitate to gun her down!"

"ENOUGH!" Samson and I flinch and stumble a little, the ground shaking faintly beneath our feet as Bianca's scream seemed to seep her powers out.

We turn to her as she glares at us, her arms are crossed, and her face is filled with stony determination. I feel my heart sink slightly as I remember so many demigods her age with the same looking rushing off against the Titan hordes.

"I can do this, I _will_ do this! Percy's sick and this is the only way we can make him better! He's my friend, I'll do whatever it takes to make him okay again!"

Samson's face hardens as he meets her eyes, both of them staring at each other with a shine to their eyes saying, 'I won't back down'.

After a tense minute of glaring, Samson huffs and motions Bianca forward. She complies, and he puts his hand on her forehead. Her eyes widen in surprise and she stumbles back, massaging her forehead and groaning in discomfort.

"Ah geez, what in the world did you do?!"

"I linked us telepathically, it's the only way I can guide you and ensure you have some proper help inside there."

"Wait, isn't that the things Satyr's do? Artemis said they can form bonds with people."

"Not quite, that's empathy. They share emotions with their connected, allowing them to have a deeper understanding of one another. What I did is something different called telepathy. That means I can speak into your mind and should the need arise control your actions personally. I did something similar with a lamia I knew a while ago. I don't like using this on people, but this is a desperate situation."

I can't help but feel uneasy about this power of Samson's, it brings back all the uncomfortable memories of my time being possessed by Mori. It's an incredible violation of privacy, but I understand why he's using this ability here and now.

Bianca's just a girl, young and inexperienced. We can't go in there with her, but it makes my uneasiness falter knowing she'll have Samson as guidance.

I take my Yankees cap and hand it to her, Samson's eyes widen lightly when he sees it.

"Huh, so that's where it went."

"You've seen this before?"

"Only for a bit, it actually belonged to that freaky Hunter I was telling you about a while ago. After she died I took the cap from her, but I thought it was lost after I died."

Bianca gasps and looks at her big bro-I mean Samson with worry, "Oh my gosh you died?!"

He shrugs his shoulders, "I got better."

Anyways, I bring everyone's attention back to the schematics and make sure Bianca is up to speed on the plan and knows her duties inside perfectly.

"You're going to be alone Bianca, but we'll guide you from the van here. Samson and I will do what we can from my laptop, but you can't rely on us to get you through. At the end of this, it's all up to _you."_

A bead of sweat drips down her face and she bites her lip nervously, drumming against the wood with her fingers as she mentally prepares herself for this solo task. Samson and I stare at her neutrally, both of us unhappy with the situation but still ready to guide her the whole way through.

She looks back at us, eyes filled with renewed resolve, "I can do it."

Simple words and a simple sentence, but the emotion and steely courage behind her words holds a great amount of meaning and worth.

She's ready.

"Excellent, then you're going to need tools," Samson says, he grabs a duffle bag full of stuff and plops it on the table, "A good demigod is a smart one. I have here everything you'll need to get in and out without being sighted."

He opens the bag and pulls out a small yet elegantly designed leather quiver full of arrows, "This here is an enchanted quiver, the arrows inside replenish after you remove one in a matter of moments. Each has a different colored fletching and effect. The bag here contains all the tools for the job and other emergency supplies should you need to apply first aid. Annabeth's cap here can turn you invisible. Absolutely do _not_ lose it, it's your greatest tool and the only thing protecting your identity from the cameras."

Bianca takes everything into her arms and slings the duffle bag and quiver over her shoulder. Samson drops to one knee and holds her shoulders, a reassuring smile on his face, "I have faith in you, you'll be fine. After all, you're a child of Hades, if there's any demigod in this world that can pull off a heist like this it's you"

She gives him a quivering smile and latches her arms around Samson, pulling him into the biggest hug her tiny arms can muster. He freezes for a second, but eventually returns with a hug of his own.

They depart, and he ruffles her hair for good measure. She swipes at his hands but keeps a happy grin the entire time.

Oh gods, I think my hearts going to melt. Last time I saw a di Angelo this happy was when we first met Nico back at their old school, back when he was a wide-eyed youth obsessed with Mythomagic.

"Alright Bianca, it's your time to shine."

* * *

 _With Bianca, spring 2011_

"Alright Bianca, it's your time to shine."

You're damn right it is, and no stupid golden robot man is taking this victory away from me! I'm Bianca di Angelo, I've got this!

Anyways… ah shoot I think I'm in over my head.

Big bro Samson and Annabeth are really nice, they have so much confidence in me to steal everything from the big building over there.

Still, I can't help but be crazy nervous about it! I mean, I have no skill in combat at all yet! Sam's been training me for a couple days when he isn't busy driving, and Annabeth has been teaching me a bunch too!

But I haven't actually fought a real monster in forever! Last time I had Artemis's blessing to make up for my lack of training but even then, that didn't really help me at all. Everything from here on is all me, and I can't say I have the same confidence my friends have in me.

 _You shouldn't underestimate yourself, your parentage grants you many boons. Luck's always going to be on your side._

Oh my gosh what was that?!

 _Telepathy remember? It's me, Samson._

R-right, mind powers and stuff. Gods that's going to be difficult to get used to. Anyways it's go time. I put Annabeth's hat on and it turns me invisible completely. I make my way through Samson's home while they prepare that weird flat gadget thing to help me travel through the building.

It's about midday outside right now, no clouds and the sun's warm and beautiful. If big bro Percy wasn't dying horribly it would be perfect for a picnic right about now!

Maybe we can go on one after we save him?

 _Focus Bianca. Go around the back of the building where the trucks are, there's construction on that side so climb up it and get to the roof._

Crap, I forgot he's still in my brain! I pick up my pace and run quietly towards the spot Sam is guiding me to. Thankfully he taught me how to be sneaky, the new 'sneakers' he bought me are so much easier to run in then my old loafers!

I peek my head around the corner and look at the construction site, there's no one around. Slowly I step towards the metal scaffolding that climbs up the side of the thirteen-story building. I find the ladders that wind up the construction sections and quickly make my way up.

A few minutes climb I find myself up on the tall roof, giant boxes and building fans whir up here, but the wind is even louder.

 _Look to your left, the big box right there is broken so the fan isn't working. Take that bronze pocketknife from your pocket and press the middle button when you place it against the screws on the middle panel._

Bronze pocket knife, got it! I take Annabeth's cap off so I can see everything again and start digging through the bag I brought with me. A minute's search I find the doohickey and take it out. It's a bronze Swiss Army Knife looking thing, only there's several buttons on the one side of it.

I follow Sam's instructions and use it on the screws, little robotic arms pop out of the tool and undo the screws at blinding speeds! The last four screws come out and I slide the panel off, revealing a chute that bends and goes straight down into the building.

 _Remember, use the black arrow. It's enchanted with a rope that's as long as you'll ever need it. Stab it into the ground and it'll stick, then use the same tool and press the bottom most button._

Okay, black arrow and bottom button. I stab the arrow into the ground and take the small rope attached to the back and toss it down the chute. The rope expands magically out of the rope until it stops. That's ready, now the button on my thing.

I press the button and yelp as the metal tool suddenly shifts and expands, growing out and covering my arm like a metal robotic arm sleeve. I gape at it for a few seconds before shaking my head free of the distraction and grabbing the rope.

Slowly I lower myself down the chute and yelp again when I feel the arm whir as motors in it latch onto the rope and slide me down quicker.

 _Don't fight the glove, it's an automatic invention I made for espionage stuff like this. It's a good shield and makes the arm it covers ten times as strong alongside other features. It'll stop you at the bottom of the vent, from there take your left and go straight until I tell you to stop._

Super robot arm with awesome features? Now that's cool. The motor quietly slides me along down the vent, the heat's kind of uncomfortable but I ignore it as for several minutes I swiftly glide down.

It's super dark down here, but I don't feel uncomfortable at all actually. Heck, even though I know it's dark I can somehow see with almost no difficulty at all!

My feet hit the bottom of the shaft and the metal glove lets go of the rope. I take the left and start crawling through the vent, being small enough that I can crawl through with little difficulty but still small enough that I can't turn around.

I continue forward for a really long time, the vent being super stuffy and crazy hot the whole way. Thankfully Samson gave me something called a 'tie dye shirt'. It's super colorful and fun, and I kind of like it actually!

Nico and I have always worn dark colors, so it's nice to have something more bright and cheery. I hope he's okay wherever he is, I _really_ want to see him again! I miss… I miss my little doofus brother!

 _Keep your mind focused Bianca, distractions get you killed. Take the next right, it'll lead to a drop down so be careful._

Right, mission first, reunions later! I take the right and see the drop he mentioned. It doesn't go far, barely a foot. There's a cover on the bottom of it, through the slit openings I can see bright white tiled floors and the voice of a man and a woman.

"I can't believe the boss! We're already working overtime, and he wants even more out of us! Rushing with potions and magic ingredients like this is a disaster waiting to happen. Remember Reggie? He rushed with that green fire in the jar and it exploded and took out half a dozen staff! Gods the stench from that was awful, it's been weeks and it still smells!"

"Oh quit whining and just do what the boss says! The last guy that tried complaining to the boss ended up being transferred to Site A! You've heard the rumors, transfers become testers. I'm not trying my luck on that!"

"Yeah, yeah, let's just get back to work. We've been fooling around in here for too long, I don't want the boss to cut my balls of because he caught us fucking!"

I hear footsteps followed by a door opening and closing, an electronic clicking sound echoing from the room. I wait a few moments incase someone else comes… it's clear.

With a grunt I grab the vent slits with the robot hand and yank it up, the metal groaning as I tear it free and draw it into the vent. I slip down to the floor and make out my surroundings. It's a big room completely full of filing cabinets.

 _Go through that door right there and head left. Follow the hallway to the end and take a left again and the first right after. That should lead to the store room._

Easy enough. I open the door a little and peek through the crack, there's a single security guard snoozing off on a foldout chair at the end of the grey walled hallway.

I open the door and quickly slip through, closing the door as quietly behind me as I can. The door closes with a soft click, but the electronic lock beeps loudly after it locks itself.

The guard flinches in his chair and groggily blinks his eyes as he looks out around the hallway. Crap, I think I've been locked out!

 _Don't panic, just continue with the mission. We can get a keycard after the stuff, there should be some you can swipe from a passing worker. Remember what Annabeth taught you about slight of hand, you'll be fine._

Y-yep, I'll be- I'll be fine, no worries at all Ha ha! Okay, back to sneaking. A few minutes of navigating the hallways and I'm at the door I need. I jiggle the handle and curse. Dammit, it's locked!

More voices down the hallway. I fit the hat on more snug and sneak towards the voices, it's the man from before discussing some weird science mumbo jumbo with another guy. Both are dressed in big white lab coats, lanyards with an id card hanging from their belts.

 _They're distracted, so sneak up behind the one man and grab it. They won't notice a thing so long as you're careful._

Slowly I sneak up behind the man from before, my footsteps as silent as a mouse. I snatch the lanyard from his belt and make my way back to the door as quickly as I can.

I hold the card to the door and it beeps and clicks unlocked, I open the door and shuffle inside.

Rows and rows of large crates line the room in shelves, like a miniature warehouse. I follow the labels on the shelves and count my way towards each item in alphabetical order.

It takes me a minute to navigate the huge room, but I find all of the ingredients Laila asked for and stuff them into my bag. Thankfully the Drakon dung and Centaur Hoof are in _sealed_ containers, I don't think I could stomach being trapped in a hot vent with smelly stuff!

 _Good job Bianca, now get out of there! Annabeth's found a hidden alarm's been triggered in the vent just now!_

Shit okay time to go! I toss the bag over my shoulder and race to the door, throwing it open and almost sprinting towards the room I came in through. Thankfully none of the patrolling guards can see me thanks to the hat, but I'm forced to stop often as they'll surely hear me if I'm not careful!

After many tense minutes and close calls, I finally end up back at the door I came in through! I sigh in relief and place the card against the lock. It clicks open and I head inside.

I barely have the time to gasp and prepare myself as a heavy fist slams straight into my face.


	39. Chapter 39

**A/N: Oh boy, Bianca's found herself in a spot of trouble now. How's Samson going to react, can you guess? Well, he is a total momma bear. Don't worry Bianca! Your almost crazy adoptive mother is on the way!**

* * *

 _With Annabeth, summer 2011_

My eyes go wide as a silent alarm warning triggers on my screen. Shit shit shit! I quickly type in a command, trying to shut the alarm down before any security personal can react.

More and more activity in the building systems pop up on my screen, automatic systems triggering security reactions across the board.

Dammit, there's point now, everyone knows someone's inside the building!

"Samson, the alarms been triggered! Tell her to get out of there now!"

"On it!" He holds his fingers up to his head like Professor X and focuses. After a minute of intensely staring at the wall he cries out in pain and falls out of his chair.

I help him to his feet as he clutches his head and grits his teeth. He stands over the table and slams his fist down hard, shaking the chandelier overhead.

"Dammit, I've lost the connection! They've got her Annabeth!"

Hera's sake why can't anything ever go right for us on this quest?!

"We've got to get her out, but we need some kind of plan first!"

He paces around angrily before stopping and inhaling sharply. He holds his breath before releasing it softy, his tense shoulders relaxing as he turns back to me. The look on his face is neutral, Zen even. But there's a dangerous glint in his eye, the same glint Percy had in Tartarus.

Samson is unhinged.

"Samson," I say carefully, holding a placating hand up in hopes of calming down his silent fury, "We can't storm the castle, we're outnumbered and outgunned. We're Children of Athena, we need to have a level head."

His lip curls into a small smile and I feel goosebumps roll down my arms. That smile gives me the creeps, the feeling of death and fury radiating from his very being. For a second, he reminds me of Loki from that Thor movie I watched a little while ago.

Samson snaps his fingers and the silver jacket I grabbed from under Ladon's foot appears in the air. He grabs it and throws it at me, "Put it on."

Only three words, but the soft way his voice speaks gives me a horrible feeling of anxiety. I swear if I didn't know it was fear, I would think he's charmspeaking me.

I put the jacket on and follow my brother as he disappears around the corner towards his living room. I call out for him to wait but he ignores me and continues marching towards the drapes leading to his van.

I spin him around as I grab hold of him, and for a brief second his face twitches into a frown before leveling out again.

"W-wait just a damn second! Samson, we can't just barge in there, we'll be massacred! I know you care about her, but we need to _think_ if we're going to save her."

He slowly smiles at me, and I flinch under the sheer _beauty_ of it. I almost feel sick looking at him, a gentle and pretty smile like that shouldn't be on the face of an immortal who's likely about to kill dozens of mostly innocent mortals.

Samson grabs my shoulders and looks me in the eyes, "I _am_ going to save her."

He gives me a quick hug before departing and marching through the drapes. I'm left stunned for a second before I shake my head and race after him. Dammit, I'm not letting my brother do this to himself alone!

* * *

Even from our parking space far away, it's clear activity is bursting in the building. Security men race around the spaces as important looking business men and woman talk into their phones with steely serious expressions.

Samson marches through the parking lot unabated, stomping his way towards the building in a straight line. He waves his hand whenever a car is in our way, and the vehicle tires screech angrily as he telekinetically forces the car out of his path.

I follow right behind him, just a little freaked out by my brother's display of power. Telekinesis is an awesome power and I totally wish I had it, but I'm more then aware of what he could do to a mortal if he really lost it.

His hands glow with silver energy, fists clenched before he throws his arms out, casting a spell that surrounds his body with the same energy. I'm reminded of the aura Hunters have if you look at them carefully, the aura of a powerful energy permeating their being and giving them power.

As I watch my brother storming towards the building, I can't help but feel like I'm looking at a god right now. Samson's magical strength followed up with his immortality really is a wonderous sight to behold. Just from feeling his aura alone, I can tell he's one of the most powerful demigods I've ever met.

We approach the main entrance of the building, and I see that the security has barricading the whole thing off. Metal gates lock the huge glass doors in place and barricades are strategically placed for the dozen and a half personnel that guard it.

A man approaches Samson, hand resting on his gun as he holds a hand out for my brother to stop, "I'm going to have to ask you to leave sir and ma'am, the buildings on lockdown for your safety."

Samson scoffs and points his hand at the man, his fingers bent into the finger gun things kids do when they don't have toy rifles. The man raises his eyebrow and screams as he's _flung_ back by an invisible force.

"Bang."

The man rams into the cage and crumples unceremoniously to the ground. The rest of the security crew scrambles around, pulling themselves into cover as the storm that is my brother slowly approaches.

Bullets stream towards us, but instead slam into an invisible wall in front of us. I can't help but flinch every so often as more and more pistols fire towards us with no effect. Though I think I'm more afraid of my brother right now, the calm way he faces down gunfire is just a hair above disturbing.

Thank the gods he's a seemingly powerful psychic.

He points his hand out towards the line of security men, and his hand glows for a second before he reels his arm back and lobs the glob of energy at the men. They shriek and freak out as the ball explodes by their feet in a blast of crackling grey fire.

Most of the men groan and cry, holding their bleeding ears as they roll in pain on the ground. Others weren't so lucky. A few more scream in agony as they're burning alive, running around like chickens with their heads chopped off.

I jab my elbow into his side hard, he coughs from the hit and glares at me from the side of his eye. I point to the burning men and give him a venomous look.

He rolls his eyes and snaps his finger. The burning men collapse to the ground, the fire on their bodies dispersing as they sigh in relief before groaning in pain.

Samson continues forward, and I give him a worried look behind his back. I think… he's having some major issues right now.

I sigh and run my hands through my hair. Gods how could I be such a fool!? Of course he's hurting, everyone he knew has been dead for a long time but it's only been months for him!

He's got almost no one now, only Bianca and myself really. No wonder he's having such a reaction to Bianca being endangered, he's close to losing one of the few people he has left!

We stop at the gates closing over the doors. Samson sighs in annoyance and grabs the bars and starts pulling them apart. I raise my eyebrow at him, "Are you really trying to rip the gate open?"

My jaw drops as the metal groans and bends away, giving us the space to slip through and open the glass doors behind them.

He pulls the metal away wide open and turns around at me, giving me a smug smirk before opening the glass door for me.

I roll my eyes and squeeze through the metal. The main hall of the building is all but abandoned right now, and an eerie feeling claws at my mind. This place doesn't feel right.

Samson looks around the hall before he spots the elevator and marches towards it. I follow right behind him, giving him a few analytical glances every so often.

He adjusts his glasses on his nose and huffs, "Can you stop looking at me? It's getting kind of creepy."

"I don't care, you're unhinged right now and I'm making sure you don't do anything you'll regret later."

"I'm perfectly level headed, so don't worry."

"Don't you dare lie! Samson, you would've let those men out there die if I didn't say anything! You're angry, and people are going to suffer because of it!"

He grunts as he presses the call button on the elevator, "…I'm fine."

That wasn't directed at me. He's trying to convince himself he's okay. I wrap an arm around his shoulder and squeeze him lovingly. His mouth crooks into a smile and I cheer internally at my victory.

The door to the elevator pings open, and five huge men stare at us in shock. Samson quickly launches a punch at the first guys face and knocks him out cold. The rest quickly scramble at us, launching fists and batons our way.

I duck under a haymaker from one guy and elbow him hard in the gut. Another man punches me square across the jaw, so I respond with an upper cut straight into his crotch. He cries out before throwing up on the floor. I take him out with a knee straight to his face.

The man I elbowed kicks off the way and tackles me to the ground, quick and fast strikes slamming into me as I defend my face with my arms. Damn, this guy must be a boxer or something!

He's violently pulled off of me and thrown back into the elevator, denting the metal wall from the impact.

My brother pulls me to my feet ad pats me off, hovering over me making sure I'm okay. Gods he's such a momma bear, no wonder Bianca loves him!

I push him aside and launch out a powerful kick into a guard who was trying to sneak up on him, hitting his gut and throwing him back to the ground. He groans once before blacking out cold.

Samson give me an impressed look, smiling fondly. We look at the defeated guards and then back to each other.

Yeah, we're a good team!

We enter the elevator and push the two unconscious guys out. Samson hits the button and we start riding the elevator upwards.

"What's the plan, and where are we going?"

"The head manager is in a flat on the topmost part of the building. We capture him and use him as a hostage and trade him for Bianca."

A good enough plan for one that he probably thought of a couple minutes ago. We ride the elevator towards the top floor and I can't help but have flashbacks to that freaking song in the elevator in Tartarus. I swear if I hear songs about Pina Coladas again I'm going to freak.

The elevator tings and opens up, and we step out into a massive hall that points us towards a huge man in an even bigger desk at the far back.

Gods, I think the entire top floor is this dude's office or something, there's so much open space here!

Samson and I march towards the man in the white suit, surety practically radiating off of us as the man stands to his full height behind his desk. Slowly he goes up… and up… and up… damn he's tall.

The man has dark skin and a bald head, his eyes are a dark brown and his toothy smile makes me feel just a little creeped out. There's no way he isn't a total psycho.

A psycho, and most certainly _dangerous._

"So," The man starts, voice heavy and thick with a New Yorker's accent, "Your little spy couldn't get what you wanted so you decided to try and take the big man yourself huh? Ballsy kid, real ballsy. I like that. Now do me a favor and get the fuck outa' here! I've got enough to deal with already."

"It's gonna be a hard pass on that. I'm here for my companion actually. I'd like for them to be turned back over to me if you'll please."

The white suited man chuckles, his massive muscles audibly straining against the stuffy suit he's wearing. He reaches under his desk and pulls a glass and some brandy out, pouring himself some and sipping on it as he points at us with his pinky.

"Nah kid, ain't gonna happen. Names The Boss, and you know what that means? It means I run this place. What I say goes. You come into my house? You demand your thief gets given back Scott free? Son, you got a nother' thing comin'. BOYS! BRING EM' OUT!"

The Boss shouts across the room and the doors behind him open as a couple dozen goons in suits come out and surround the sides and back of Samson and me. A couple security men drag a bruised and bloody scraggly man and throw him to the ground.

Samson and I look at each other, both of us clearly confused as hell.

"Uhhhh, who the Hades is he?"

The Boss slams his fist on his desk, the wood cracking and the entire top floor seeming to shake and rattle, "DON'T PLAY GAMES WITH ME! DROP TO YOUR KNEES OR I'LL KILL YOUR MAN!"

Samson's eyebrows crunch in confusion and does a little go right ahead gesture with his hand, "Sure kill him, he's not our man."

The Boss gives us and the strange man a weird look, "Well then who the fuck is he with?!"

A muffled chopping sound suddenly starts getting progressively louder. We all look around, and I spot an unmarked black helicopter approaching the building from the distance. The Boss walks over to the glass, mouthing a silent 'what the fuck?'

The chopper turns, and the door opens up to reveal a man with a _very_ scary looking machine gun. All our eyes widen, and my brother quickly grabs me and spins us around, so his back is facing the gun.

Everyone barely has time to scream as all hell breaks loose.

* * *

Screams, glass shattering, a roaring torrent of bullet fire.

I start shaking as all kinds of images flash through my mind. Silena's scream of pain, the sounds of _childen_ fending off hordes of monsters. _T-Tartarus._

Someone starts shaking me and calling my name, I almost don't hear it.

Luke, Charles, all of my friends. Death, destruction and fire. All of them, I can see their dead bodies flashing before me.

" _.na. !"_

I can _hear_ them, children crying out for their mothers as they try to desperately hold their organs inside their little bodies.

" _Anna…h!"_

Gods, they were so young, they had the whole world ahead of them! All the screams, all the blood and viscera. Please just… make it go. Please please, I don't… I DON'T WANT TO REMEMBER!

Something slaps me hard across the face, and the heavy ringing in my ears goes away and I regain control of my thoughts.

My eyes are foggy, I can barely make out some form looking down at me. Slowly my vision clears and I find myself staring into the scared eyes of my brother, his hair is disheveled and golden blood leaks down the side of his face.

"W-what just happened?"

"Annabeth, we need to leave! Someone just attacked the building and men are launching bombs into this place! The whole building might collapse!"

Oh shit, fuck me goddamnit what the fuck!

Samson helps me to my feet, and I cover my mouth as I gasp at the sight before me. Everyone, all the security and goons are crumpled to the floor. Sickly amounts of red blood paint the entire floor, the faces of all of them frozen in fear and pain.

I turn away from the carnage, Samson hiding his face in my shoulder as we lead each other back to the elevator.

Gunfire echoes from somewhere in the building and people's screams of terror cross our hearing. We hit the call button on the elevator, but nothing happens. I hit it a few more times and curse, punching the control panel in frustration.

The power's out!

Samson growls and turns back around, carefully stepping over the corpses of all the poor souls killed by the mystery attackers.

Something groans and curses behind the huge desk. Samson and I ready ourselves as the entire desk is picked up and thrown out of a window, revealing a _very_ angry The Boss.

"Fucking Triumvirate bastards! Think you can get away with this, think you can fuck with me?! Shoulda' tried harder assholes, I'm coming after ya' hear me!? THIS SHIT WON'T FLY!"

A metal panel covering the vent above our heads crashes as it's torn from its casing and tossed to the ground. Little feet pop out of the vent as Bianca slowly pushes herself out of the cramped tunnel.

Samson quickly races towards her and catches her as she falls down, gently placing her to her feet as he fawns over her like a worried mother.

"Bianca! Oh gods Bianca you're okay!"

"Ah! Stop it, my hair is fine!"

"Oh honey I'm so sorry, I never should've let you go alone!"

Bianca blushes under the attention and weakly pushes Samson away. She looks around and grimaces at the carnage, nose crinkling as the overwhelming scent of blood pricks at her nose.

"Are you okay, what happened to you? The last thing I saw through your eyes was a fist slamming into your face!"

"Gods yeah, _that guy._ There was some other dude scrambling towards the vent and he punched me when I opened the door. I got mad of course and punched him right back! I went back up the vent as some guys grabbed the man and took him away. I got lost in the vents and I heard you guys saying you were going to the top floor when I was in them, so I climbed my way up to find you again!"

She huffs tiredly after telling her story and latches her arms around Samson, squeezing him tightly as she groans into his shoulder, "I just… can we go home?"

My heart melts as she says that. Gods it's so sweet, home to her is Samson's house! I smile fondly as Samson whispers sweet words to Bianca, calming her down as she smiles sweetly at him.

"Now isn't that sweet! You guys happy? Enjoying your little reunion?" Our heads snap as The Boss cracks his knuckles, ripping his torn shirt off and leering at us, "Yeah, I'm still here. I think those little noggins of yours needs some smashing open right now!"

Samson pushes Bianca behind himself and sizes the overgrown man up. I come to his side and roll my shoulders, readying myself to kick some serious ass. Bianca comes around Samson's other side and crosses her arms, trying her hardest to look intimidating.

My brother smiles and pats her head, clearly loving her attempts as trying to look scary.

As much as I love Bianca, she's a cinnamon roll. What with her bright tie die shirt and adorable freckled face and all. She's twelve, kids her age are _always_ adorable. Hell, Percy sure as heck was too!

The Boss growls menacingly at us, each step he takes towards us shakes the broken glass as his slow pace turns into a charge of rage.

Bianca and I split off to the sides and come around the back of the man while Samson acts as bait. The Boss goes to crush Samson with a huge slam, but he ducks under his legs and punches the man square in the small of his back.

He cries out from the surprise hit and slams straight into the elevator, denting the doors so hard the cave completely inwards. The Boss growls and yanks one of the doors clean from the wall and turns around and hurtles it at us.

My eyes go wide, and I drop to the floor, blood splashing my face from a body below me as the door sails over head and crashes into my brother, launching him back into the far wall where he crumples to the ground.

I quickly roll away as the humongous man stomps hard on the floor where I was just a second ago, bones crushing and squishing sickly as he stomps the head of a dead man instead.

Bianca summons her bow and starts launching arrows into The Boss's back, a dozen arrows sticking out of him like a porcupine. He reaches down and grabs a body and hurtles it at Bianca who yelps as she's struck by the makeshift projectile.

I summon Mori's sword from the ring on my finger and charge the man, raking a deep gash along his back and going to run him through with it.

Suddenly his hand shoots backwards and grabs my arm. He squeezes with little effort and I cry out in agony as I feel my entire arm crack, my bones most certainly broken. The boss lifts me high in the air and throw me by my broken arm into the wall far away.

I start gasping silently, the air having been thrown from my lungs on impact. The Boss slowly approaches me, each step echoing like thunder as he looms near me.

"Ya' know, you've all been rude guests. I don't know who you's was workin' for, but I'll be sure to send them your mangled fuckin' bodies as a message! No one fucks with the boss!"

He raises his arms to smash me when Bianca suddenly jumps on his back and pulls her bow tight against his throat, surprisingly strangling him to great effect.

The Boss gags and chokes, his arms flailing around as his huge muscles prevent him from reaching around and grabbing Bianca. Her eyes shine with intense darkness as she pulls against his throat with all her might, "Leave. Her. Alone!"

He suddenly yanks his arm around hard and grabs her by her side and chucks her far across the room. She yelps and cries out, but Samson was back on his feet and quickly grabbed her before she was flung out of the open window.

Samson sets her down to her feet and charges at The Boss. He growls angrily and charge back at my brother, both of them meeting each other head on and grabbing one another's fists.

The Boss grits his teeth as my brother matches his physical might. He brings his head back to deliver a powerful headbutt but misses as my brother drops his head low. Samson quickly brings his knee up and delivers a bone crushing slam into the bottom of the larger man's jaw.

He reels back in pain, blood gushing from his mouth as he spits out chunks of broken teeth, "Ah you motha' fucka'! Teeth ain't easy to replace!"

My brother ignores the man's complaint and tackles him to the ground, unleashing a flurry of fast and angry punches directly into the man's face.

Worry slowly wells inside of me as my brother refuses to stop smashing the man's face, blood coating his knuckles as a furious and psychopathic look of rage and ecstasy fills his eyes. I weakly call out for my brother but being slammed into the wall has taken it out of me, my voice is barely even a whisper.

Bianca's eyes are wide in a mix of fear and worry, she's frozen like a dear in headlights as she watches my brother slowly beat a man to death with his fists.

After a moment she walks slowly towards him, each step full of uncertainty. Eventually, she reaches him and wraps her arms around his middle, resting her head on his back as his punches slowly crawl to a halt.

The two of them stay like that for a moment, neither saying anything as Samson's eyes widen in realization. He looks down at his bloody knuckles, hands shaking in a mixture of fear and adrenaline.

"Bianca, Annabeth… I don't think I'm okay…"

My heart sinks at his words, the tone of his voice fills me with sadness. That tone, that way of speaking, there's no room for error.

Samson is a defeated man.

Bianca nuzzles her cheek against his back, "It's okay, none of us are. That's why we have to stick together, so we can help each other when we need it."

Samson chuckles once and smiles softly at Bianca, "When did you get so wise?"

She turns to him and smiles back, "When I met you."

* * *

"There, that outa do it. Give him a day or two and he'll wake right up." Laila pours the potion down Percy's throat and excuses herself from our room. Bianca, Samson and I sigh in relief as Percy's labored breathing evens out and becomes normal, his skin returning to its natural tanned color.

I glance at Samson as he fiddles with an elegant ring on his finger, "Hey Samson, what's with the ring? I saw you take it from The Boss before we left."

He's silent for a moment as he stares blankly at the wall, "…It's my wedding ring. Mori must've given it to him, the enchantment is probably the reason why he was so strong."

Bianca's eyebrows scrunch as she looks at his ring, "Is it like the One Ring?"

"W-what? How on the world do you know about that?"

"You know, from the book? It's a magic ring that makes you stronger!"

Samson chuckles lightly, "You're dead on about that actually. The rings I made for my wife and I are special. The magic in them amplifies one key ability for every person. For The Boss, it makes him physically stronger. For me, it improves the potency and strength of my spells. It changes for every person what it's going to improve."

Bianca looks in amazement at his ring, becoming enamored in the elegant beauty of its craftsmanship.

I lean back against the bed and stare at the sealing, my mind racing with thoughts from our fight just a few hours ago. I idly scratch at the cast on my arm as worried emotions well up inside of me.

My brother, he's having some serious explosive issues right now. Keeping in line with Bianca's nerdy comparison from before, does that make my brother Sauron?

Is he… becoming a villain? I saw the look in his eyes, he enjoyed nearly beating that man to death and would've if Bianca hadn't stopped him. Is he losing it, has the loss of everyone close broken him completely?

The answer of it being 'it's complicated' really scares me.


	40. Chapter 40

**A/N: Hey all, chapter 40 is here. Ready for some personal emotions? No? Oh well, it's here to stay. Now, onto the chapter!**

* * *

 _With Annabeth, spring 2011_

Things have been… tense these past couple days we've been driving to Boston to pick up Samson's boat. He's been quiet, distracted and aloof. Whenever I try to get anything out of him, he clams up and shuts me out.

It's been stressful as hell! Athena's sake, we're supposed to help each other out! Even if he's my half-brother I still care about him, he's not a bad person even if he thinks that he is.

Bianca's been spending significantly more time with Samson ever since the break in at Mori's company building. I'm quite thankful that she is though, Bianca has this amazing ability to melt your fucking heart through sheer adorableness.

Laila's been squatting around Samson's house a lot now that I realize. She was supposed to leave after they brought Bianca back, but she refuses to leave and generally holds herself up in a room she claimed a while ago.

Apparently, she's going to become Samson's 'maid' in exchange for living here.

We all know this means that she's not going to do shit to keep the place and just end up being a couch bum.

When I confronted her about this that stupid witch had the audacity to say, 'Of course. What, did you expect me to do things?'.

It took Samson and Percy hauling me off her to stop me from choking the life out of her then and there.

Oh yeah, Percy's made a full recovery by the time we got to Boston. He's a strong boy, the potion flushed the poison right out of him.

Anyways, we arrived in Boston and my brother decided to stop us at the Boston Museum of fine arts, the big one with almost half a million pieces of art work and artifacts available for viewing.

He pulls us into a parking space and we happily walk towards the museum. Samson pays for our admission (which wasn't cheap at all, but he insisted) and we enter.

We all had a fun time, Samson greatly enjoyed impressing Bianca with all of his knowledge of the exhibits. Though I couldn't help but feel just a tad bit suspicious of my brother. He seemed… different then how he usually is.

I kept a close eye on him over the next couple of ours as we traverse the exhibits. At a glance he seems fine, ordinary like everyone else. This is Samson however, he's not ordinary in any means.

Watching him during the trip, he was clearly keeping himself distracted. The entire time he was explaining things to Bianca who was soaking up his stories and knowledge like a sponge. This is the most vocally active I've ever seen him before.

Percy lumbered behind us most of the time, history always bored the Dickins out of him from what Sally has told me. Though he did surprise me when he successfully answered a question I had been pondering since we got to Boston.

"…Hey Wise Girl, what's up? You've had that face on the entire time we've been here."

"W-wuh? Oh, it's my brother, he's been acting weird the entire time."

Percy looks neutrally at Samson as he excitedly shows Bianca an old Egyptian sarcophagus.

"Seems fine to me, if anything he's kinda happier now."

I tsk in distaste and scrunch my eyebrows at the duo, "See that's the thing, it's _why_ he's so happy right now?! It's just suspicious, no one can one eighty like that!"

Percy raises an eyebrow at me and gives me a suspicious look, "I guess it's true, girls _can't_ let boys just be happy."

I punch him hard in the gut and he folds in half over my fist, wheezing, "…right…sorry…"

He coughs one more time and I fold my arms and glare at Percy as he rises to his full height, rubbing the back of his head nervously as he looks at Samson and Bianca one more time.

"Ah geez Annabeth, why did you have to hit so hard? I don't know, maybe he had a friend who lived here an he's trying to make a happy memory to cover up his internalized sadness?"

"Don't be ridiculous! Obviously… you're right, what the fuck Percy?"

He shrugs his shoulders and continues on as Samson and Bianca move to the next exhibit, leaving me stunned in place as I ponder Percy's theory.

Perhaps that's exactly what he's doing? Samson is trying to make happy memories here with Bianca because he's saddened by a loss. If that's the case, then who is it that he knew in Boston?

I catch up to my companions, mind still racing with worried thoughts.

* * *

Samson disappeared for a bit, leaving us alone at the entrance to the New England Aquarium here. It took about twenty minutes, but he returned with a young-looking teenager by his side.

I squint my eyes and take in their features; mismatched eyes, dark green hair and tanned skin. They look young, sixteen maybe? Their sex is hard to make out though, they could successfully pass for a boy or a girl.

The stranger waves at us, "Sup."

Samson stands between us and introduces his new friend who just stares at us neutrally, "Hey guys, this is Alex. They're just a pal I met who I owe a meal to, they'll stick around for a bit while we're in the aquarium."

I raise a suspicious eyeball at 'Alex' as they idly scrape muck from under their nails. Their mismatched eyes flicker to mine for a second before looking away uninterested.

Samson's eyes meet mine, and a few bands of sweat drip down his face nervously as I stare him dead in the eyes. Percy breaks the tension by throwing his hand out to Alex and offering a friendly hand shake.

They roll their eyes and reciprocate. Bianca gives Alex a suspicious look and I give her a quick glance of thanks, I'm happy at least _someone_ is suspicious with me about this person.

We enter the aquarium, and despite the tension between half of our party and the stranger we manage to have a fun time there. Samson even managed to somehow get us in the backroom and meet with some California Sea Lions.

Bianca practically gushes over the mammals, Percy acting as a narrator for her. Alex was obviously weirded out by Percy's lack of tact about the fact that he's probably one of the few beings that can actively talk with aquatic animals.

I quickly moved us to the food court area and Samson bought meals for everyone. Alex scarfed their food down and left soon after, Samson following as they went somewhere for a private discussion.

Percy, Bianca and I ate our food and were left to ourselves for around fifteen minutes, Percy passing the time by telling Bianca stories about Nico during the wars.

"You should've seen him, he just showed up with an entire army of undead and helped us all drive the Titan army away! I tell you what, it was a moment of sweet relief having zombies help us and handle the brunt of the fighting. He was one of the most heroic people that day, I don't think I've seen so many demigods _that_ hopeful before!"

Bianca's eyes are wide with stars in them as she idly sips her cola, completely mesmerized with Nico's tales of heroics.

"Golly, he must've been _so_ popular after that! He probably had an army of boys at his feet because of that!"

Percy and I wince at Bianca's ignorance, even after all that he's done so few truly appreciate him.

"Bianca I… Bianca, Nico's had it hard from the moment you left. Being a Child of Hades has always been seen as bad luck, even after saving everyone many times people still find it better to shun him."

The sparkle in her eyes dim as a conflicted expression works its way on her face, "But that… that shouldn't be right, no that can't be right! He's a hero, people loved Thalia and you, so why not Nico?! He has just as much of a right to love as you do!"

Percy puts his hands up as Bianca's eyes darken, the shadows in the food court seeming to become pitch black as her emotions work up. I put a hand on Bianca's shoulder and she turns to me, her eyes seeming like hollow holes into the deepest void.

"Why… why don't they love him?"

Her voice softens and small tears prickle in the corners of her eyes, "This is… I did this. I left him alone, let him suffer with no one while I got a new family. I'm… selfish."

She turns to Percy, her expression one of exhaustion and defeat, "…Percy, am I a bad sister?"

He puts his hands on her shoulder and looks her square in the eye, face stony and more serious then I've ever seen him before, "Bianca, stop that! You're a wonderful sister and you've only ever done your best. Don't let _anyone_ tell you otherwise!"

Bianca sniffles once and gives Percy a small smile. He gives her one of his famous stupid grins and she giggles happily, rolling her eyes and calling him a seaweed brain.

A few more minutes pass and Samson finally comes back to our table sans a mysterious teenager.

"Where'd Alex go?"

"They had to go, we were only with each other because I needed some info, that's why I bought them a meal here."

"What kind of person exchanges a meal for information? That seems like a poor trade off."

"They were homeless, a good meal will get you many things from them. Besides, they're not so bad. They had a pretty sad story actually, but that's a story for another day."

We all blink in surprise at the reveal, Alex was homeless? They had a really good sense of style, their clothes being very clean and them seeming very well kept. I suppose I shouldn't judge, shelters do exist after all.

"Anyways let's get going, there's a few more places I want to visit before we head off to my wharf."

Bianca looks at us questioningly, eyes darting between Samson and I, "Isn't that the guy from Star Trek?"

* * *

The day is just hitting its midpoint as Samson drops us off at the great big public gardens here in Boston. We set ourselves down a picnic blanket and enjoyed the time to ourselves, letting the nice and bright sun warm us up.

Bianca sits next to Samson as he points out some neat information about the history of Boston. Percy leans against my shoulder and sigh happily, letting my natural body heat warm him up in place of the sun.

He starts snoring aand I roll my eyes and look back at my brother, "Hey Samson, have you been to Boston before? You seem to know a huge amount about this place?"

"I had an old buddy who used to live out here, they took me all around the place and talked my ear off about the great history of Boston. I tell you what, that boy could've been a historian with all of the crap he knew. Oh well, last I knew he was just finishing up law school to become a lawyer. I… hope he was successful, he really had all of the heart to be a great lawyer."

Samson's voice trails off as he looks to the ground sadly, eyes blank as he seems to be lost in his own personal memories.

The atmosphere quickly becomes dreary as Samson is increasingly lost in his forlorn memories. Bianca cuts through the sadness by asking a simple and innocent question, "What were they like?"

He smiles fondly and starts talking our ears off about his old friend, his smile seeming to infect us with smiles of our own.

We sit together as one big group of friends, letting the hours pass us by as the midday sun slowly begins to dip down towards the horizon. Eventually we pack back up in Samson's van and start heading towards the Boston Harbor.

Samson does take us to one final stop however. He takes us to the front of a large mansion along the way to his dock, the building clearly being and seemingly abandoned for many years.

The front lawn is unkempt, grass grows high around the numerous items littered all over. Windows are cracked and broken, some even boarded up and tons and tons of graffiti line the many outside walls.

Samson and I look about the dilapidated grounds, me with a skeptical look and my brother with an expression of forlorn longingness.

"Samson, what is this place?"

"…" No answer.

He sighs once and starts leaving the van. I go to follow with him, but he stops me before I can even open my door.

"No. Not now, this is… private. Just… let me do this solo, please? I'll be back in an hour or so."

And then he's gone without another word, he practically glides across the courtyard with a sense of familiarity before disappearing through the front doors.

I sigh once and slink back inside Samson's home, my mind racing with thoughts of worry and anticipation.

Bianca and Percy question me about Samson, but I shut them down by recounting his wishes. They both look uneasy but choose to honor Samson and go back to relaxing in his living room, Percy showing Bianca the wonders of video games by playing an N64 he bought along with some games from an old pawn shop.

I decide to distract myself by watching them play games together, maybe the bright colors will distract me from my worried thoughts.

It only works so well.

* * *

It was very late at night when I suddenly woke up, my wonderful dream about my favorite book series turning into a sour nightmare that woke me up in a cold sweat.

I sit up in the bed I'm sharing with Percy and rub my sleepy eyes. I look around my room and remember where I'm at, Samson's little palace mom decided to give him.

The room is dark, very dark. Percy snores and drools on his pillow to my side, and I lick my dry lips as my throat suddenly becomes scratchy.

Damn, I'm thirsty.

I slowly slide out of our bed and make my way through the halls of Samson's home and head towards his kitchen. I walk down the stairs and head towards the living room, when I suddenly hear soft sniffling.

Slowly I sneak my way into the living room, the entire place a pitch black illuminated only just faintly by the moons light reflecting faintly through the heavy curtains covering the window. I make my way towards them and draw them aside, allowing significantly more moons light to illuminate the room enough for me to see.

I turn around and jump slightly as the moon illuminates my brother's figure on the couch, head in his hands as he sits down on the sofa.

My heart beats rapidly for a moment, but the tiny freak out passes, and I go to call out to him but stop as I hear a quiet sniffle echo from him.

He sighs once sadly and massages his head with his hands before bringing his head up to look at me. I reel back in shock as I take in his appearance fully.

His eyes are red and puffy, streams of wetness snake down his cheeks as his previously cried tears begin to dry. His hair is messy and matted, like he was stressfully tugging at chunks of his hair.

I gasp once in horror as my eyes trail down to his arms, long and thin cuts snake down his arm as thin drips of golden ichor bleed from the wounds.

Samson tries to smile, but his lips fail to form anything close to a smile, "Hey Annabeth, what's up?"

I'm on him in an instant, grabbing his arms and holding them up so I can better see the extent of his wounds. I fawn over him like a mother hen, making sure he's fine and not in any danger of bleeding out. He sighs softly and waves a hand over each of his arms, the wounds stitching together and closing shut.

"I know what it looks like, but I wasn't trying to kill myself."

"Oh really?! It wasn't what it looked like?! Samson you had cuts all over your arm, how the hell was I supposed to take it?!"

He leans back into the couch and stares up at the high ceiling, "It wasn't meant to be harmful, I was just… checking if I really had golden blood. I found somethings in that mansion, old memories dredged up that left me in a moment of weakness. Give it a day and I'll be fine, it was just… an irrational moment."

I take some time to study his face, really examining him for anything that even _hints_ that he could be lying. I don't find anything, so I sigh deeply and sit next to him on the couch. He scooches over and leans his head against my shoulder.

"That mansion back there, it belonged to an old friend of mine, a wonderful man named Max. He was my best friend, one of the only ones I knew who could still be alive today, but of course I wasn't so lucky. That person back then, Alex, I bought them out with some food to see of they could tell me anything about Max. They pointed me back to his mansion, telling me a squatter in there knew about the mansion and what happened to it."

He hiccups once and melt further into my shoulder. I wrap an arm around him and gently squeeze his shoulder, staying perfectly quiet as he recounts his tale from the past six hours.

"He died, only a few years ago. Got in a nasty car accident that killed him dead. He had a son too, an angry boy that vanished after the accident. I was supposed to be a godfather, but my hubris costed me so much time. Mori's lost her mind and is being controlled by some mysterious force, Max and his boy are dead, and any of my demigod friends died well before I ever came back. Even my friend Daisy has been missing, no amount of scrying can help me uncover her location."

We're quiet for a few moments, the weight of all of his loses weighing heavy on his shoulders, "I'm alone, the last one from my era."

Fresh tears spill from his eyes as he silently wallows in agony. He shifts and lies down on the couch, laying his head down on my lap and refusing to meet my eyes with his. Be it shame or embarrassment, he refuses to allow us to connect on that level.

I exhale softly and run my hands through his hair, "You aren't alone Samson, you have family here and now. Mori isn't gone, she can be saved. You two have eternity to rekindle your love, both of you are immortal after all. I'm sorry about your friend, he seems like a wonderful man. But he wouldn't want you to suffer and cry like this. You're alive Samson, and that's a special and beautiful thing. Live your life, not just for yourself but for all those who meant something to you. Enjoy yourself and be happy, that's the best way to honor them."

He sniffles a few more times and looks up at me, his lips pulled into a soft smile, "I see why you're so legendary now, why the Fates chose you to be one of the Seven. You're as wise as our mother and as loving as Hestia. I'm proud to be your brother, you're truly the best of us."

I blush a little in embarrassment but smile at his compliments. I've always wanted to meet elder demigods, to learn from them and see if I'm truly worth something.

Hearing my brother, a man seventy-two years in age now, tell me that I'm worth so much and then more is a wonderful feeling. It's reassuring to know that even if my mother doesn't think I'm as great as those from before, that those same people think of me as being the best of the bunch.

A book from the table levitates over to Samson and he snatches it from the air. It's a simple bound leather journal, no markings or anything to otherwise show it's special.

"I found this in the mansion, it's a journal Max wrote in. I tried to read from it, but it's enchanted to repeat what was written in the writer's voice. I heard him, and I just… couldn't handle it. It was so uncanny hearing the voice of my dead friend like he was right _there._ I cut my arms open, just little scratches to see if it was all a dream or not. Maybe, somewhere deep down inside, I wanted to see if I had red blood, to know if I'm truly cursed with immortality forever. As you can see, the results are open for show."

I take a few moments to soak everything up, allowing myself time to find a good response to my brother's worries. He's patient with me, allowing himself to become comfortable with my embrace, a connection between us that only siblings can understand.

"I think you should open it, let yourself hear him one more time. It's a blessing being able to hear a deceased love one again, let yourself be selfish with this. I think you'll be able to find your peace if you allow yourself to do this."

His eyes go distant for a few moments, thoughts and feelings likely racing through his mind. After a minute he nods once and opens the book to the first page, a crispy and matured voice of a Boston man playing from the journal, the words figuratively melting off of the book and turning into sound.

" _July 14_ _th_ _, 1991. I know I'm just writing into an empty journal, but Mori seems to think it'll help with my depression. 'Moving on' and all that other shit. 'I don't need this', I say 'just a simple spiral notebook is all I need'. Of course that witch decides that's not good enough and comes back three weeks later with a magic journal made from the hide of some monster she got from some Nordic dipshit._

 _Whatever, I'll make the most outa' what I got. I think it should start with a nice message to an old friend. Samson, I know you're long gone by now. Likely waiting for my ancient and boney ass to kick the bucket and meet up with ya' in the underworld, but you've gotta wait a while longer._

 _I'm… I'm a father now. Eris and I finally decided to have a kid after thirty years of marriage. Sure as shit took us a while, but I'm glad that we've got something. I don't know if she was keeping me healthy or what, but maybe she'll help me stay healthy enough to see my boy grow big and strong._

 _Maybe he'll even bring some honor to the Strife family name, gods know I never did much with it._

 _Eris and I decided on a name not long ago. Little baby Samuel Moroiaca Strife. I wanted to go with Samson, but Eris wouldn't let me, she said it was an ugly name. I did convince her to let me call the red-eyed bastard Sam, that way there's something coming back for ya'._

 _I've been having some pretty nasty dreams lately. Of me dying in a horrible accident and having to leave my boy alone in this world._

 _I don't know if it's just the stress eating at me or something else. All I know is, I'm running on short fumes now. The old gas tank is running low, every day that passes by I feel myself getting just a little more weary. The old bull is finally reaching his end._

 _I'm an old man now buddy, I think I'll be seeing you soon here._

 _Remember that time when we first met? When that pack of giants tore through that town I happened to be visiting at the time? I think about it a lot, how I never would've become the man I am now if we hadn't happened to have met._

 _I still think back to that time you helped me find my ma', how you inadvertently introduced me to my love and life. Eris was always a feisty girl, but I think we've changed each other._

 _Is it possible for a mortal to change a goddess? Perhaps, all I know is her love for our boy is something special._

 _I've gotta go now, Eris and I have one last date to ourselves. After our boy is born she'll have to leave me for good I fear._

 _You're my best friend Samson, in this life and the next._

 _Till we meet again._

 _~Maximillian Strife, the friend who never forgets."_


	41. Chapter 41

**A/N: Welcome back folks, chapter 41 here. We'll be heading back to some familiar waters (haha) and meet some familiar faces. Should have some fun, Samson's friends have always been pretty freaky.**

* * *

 _With Annabeth, Spring 2011_

I awaken to the wonderful smell of cooked eggs and bacon. Percy and I practically float off our beds and down the stairs, Bianca and Laila following us as we make our way into the kitchen.

The morning sunlight seeps in through the windows and our hungry party piles into Samson's kitchen. He stands over the stove, sliding eggs around in a pan then quickly putting a couple on a plate after they're done cooking, placing a piece of bacon with it to top the meal off.

We all pile around the table as Samson passes plates out for us, a small smile on his face as he happily goes about cleaning up the mess.

Percy stuffs a strip of bacon in his mouth and points his fork at Samson, "You seem happy today. Not to be an ass, but you've been emulating Nico for a couple days."

Samson holds back a chuckle and sits down at the table with us, popping open a soda can and sipping on it, "Yeah I've been in the rut for a little while. I'm better though, Annabeth here really helped me out last night. Thank you by the way, I really appreciate it."

"You're quite welcome," I say smiling, "You're an amazing person, Samson, we all need some help every once in a while."

Laila fake gags and shoves a bite of egg in her mouth. Bianca frowns at her and kicks her chair, causing Laila to turn and glare at her, "The hell brat?! I'm trying to eat in peace!"

Bianca crosses her arms and glares back, both of them refusing to back down and continue their standoff for several minutes while the rest of us eat.

Samson rolls his eyes but lets the children at his table keep up their theatrics.

Percy scoops the last bit of food into his mouth and turns back to Samson just as he finishes his meal, "I've heard you got a boat, what's the story with that? Annabeth said you had an old warship."

"Correct, she's an old boat from the war. Call her _The Gauntlet,_ a retired service vessel Queen Amphitrite gave me after I did a favor for her a while back. She had Poseidon's cyclopes replace the engine and armor, and even had it stocked with a Naiad crew."

"Wait my stepmom gave you a tricked-out boat? What in the world did you do for her that she'd do _that_ much in return? Last time I did a favor for her, she gave me a bottle of wine as thanks. I almost died doing it!"

Samson chuckles lightly at Percy's short bad luck story, "Then I sure am glad Amphitrite seemed to like me better."

Percy crosses his arms and grumbles angrily, quietly mumbling 'wasn't nice to _me!_ '

"She accidentally released Cetus onto the waters of Iceland after she let it out to use the bathroom. Don't ask me how you designate a place in the water for a sea serpent to use the toilet since the _entire_ surrounding area basically is."

Percy suddenly perks, an excited glint in his eye, "Oh! I know how they do it actually! The water in my Dad's kingdom is surprisingly clean, they don't _actually_ go potty anywhere they feel like it! They-"

His voice trails off as everyone gives him a 'wtf?' look. He blushes in embarrassment and closes his mouth, letting Samson continue his story.

"Anyways… She sent me there where my, then at the time, best friend Mori was spending time with her father. Long story short I killed Cetus by severing the nerves on its neck and letting it fall and drown. A year or so later I asked her for a boat that could survive the Sea of Monsters and she sent me _The Gauntlet_ alongside a crew of Naiads."

Percy gives Samson an appreciative nod, "Sounds about right, nice gods are far more generous. I helped her find her crown one time and she also tried to give me a Naiad servant. Well… I guess I technically still own her, but I told her just to hang out in the lake. It's still kinda weird owning a Nymph."

Samson's eyebrows scrunch in confusion, "I don't… own the crew, at least I don't think I do?"

"Oh dude you totally do, it's a law for any kind of Nymph across the board. They're magically obligated to do as you say, it's honestly sad since Nymph's are essentially slaves for most gods. I really hope you treat them right, Naiads are pretty fragile."

Samson goes a little pale, likely realizing he's essentially obligated to owning slaves, "…Right…Nymph's… Anyways, I don't have to worry about them being fragile. The girls are as strong as Daughters of Ares, and a million times better looking too. Best crew on the waters, hands down. Hades, they even defeated Chrysaor and his crew with me without suffering a single casualty!"

Percy's eyes go wide, "Wait, _you_ fought Chrysaor before?! We did one time too, man that guy was scary! His crew took over the Argo II in like, a minute! I tried dueling him, but he was good, _scary good."_

Samson shivers, "Boy do I know that. Even my other form couldn't beat him, and she's the strongest demigod that I know!"

"Wait, 'other form'? What the Hades is that?"

Samson blinks a few times before his mouth opens into an 'O' shape, "Right, I forget to show you guys. I suppose we should switch out, it's been a while since she's had her turn."

He snaps his fingers, and our mouths go agape in amazement as his body suddenly shifts, transforming into a young woman with black hair and startling silver eyes. Her expression is neutral, guarded even, and a long-jagged scar is drawn across her neck.

The woman gives us a small wave, "Hello, I'm Abigail."

* * *

After the… reveal of my brother's other half/past incarnation, our group continued on to the Wharf Sam-Abig-THEY apparently own.

Abigail has decided she wants to stick around for a little bit, they switch off every once in a while, and it's her turn now.

It was kind of awkward at first, it's not every day that your brother drops the bomb that he's sharing a body with his past life who also happens to be an incredibly familiar looking woman.

I struck up a conversation with Abigail as she was driving the van and pleasantly surprised to find that her and Samson essentially share the same feelings on things. She pointed out to me that they're one in the same being, so there's no reason to treat her like a stranger.

"You were a Hunter of Artemis before your reincarnation?"

"Correct, I was her lieutenant actually. I succeeded Phoebe, who was the first, and Zoe replaced me after my death."

"What was it like, if I may ask?"

"Pleasant at first, but slowly I began to realize the atrocities and hypocrisy of the Hunt. Artemis is a flawed goddess with eschewed outlooks on things she cannot understand. I am quite thankful Bianca found a way out, it would be a shame to see her corrupted into a murderer at such a young age. Though it saddens me Artemis has stooped so low she now preys on children for her Hunters, snatching them up like a witch before they can truly become mature enough to understand the responsibility of being a handmaiden."

That's a very… emotional reaction despite Abigail keeping a neutral face on for her entire speech. It's surprising to hear things like this come from a Hunter's mouth, and a lieutenant and that as well!

Though I can't help but wonder, will Thalia ever come to feel the same way? She was only fifteen when she joined the Hunt. I love her greatly, but her decision really came off as being forced and just a tiny bit selfish.

During the months when it was Luke, Thalia and I surviving on the streets, we encountered the Hunt a few times, and each time Thalia grew to despise Artemis more and more, citing hypocrisy and all the evil actions of them as a reason she never wanted me or herself to join.

I did feel my heart break a little when she joined with only a few seconds thought after Artemis gave her an offer. I'm surprised Zeus allowed Thalia to keep her powers at all! Most demigods that join the Hunt lose their powers, their true godly parents take it as an insult that they swear allegiance to another goddess and sever their connection to their domain.

Oh well, daughters of Zeus are allowed much more freedom to do things. Guess lightning beard has a soft spot for his daughters.

The wharf Abigail's boat is docked at was only an hours drive from where the van was parked, we arrived they're before noon and our adventure group, sans Laila, made our way out of the van.

Abigail stops as she stares at the large warehouse looking building that hangs half on the land with another garage that extends far out over the water. She looks around the surrounding buildings, making sure we're at the right place.

"This is… new, there was never a structure here before," She scratches her head dumbfoundedly, "No one should've been able to purchase this dock, it's a godly one. Plus _I_ own it!"

Our party follows her as she walks over to the entrance and knocks on the door. We wait a few minutes, and loud crashes and people cursing echo from inside the sheet metal walls.

Feet stomp to the door and it flies open as a woman with auburn hair and an eye patch almost kicks the door open and slurs at us, a bottle of beer in her hands, "Was-what the fuck you want?! I told you bitches, I don't want your damn Girl Scout cookies!"

The scary woman rubs her eye and blinks it, clearing away the fogginess from it. Her good eye widens as she sees Abigail.

"Hello Ornea, taking good care of yourself I see," Abigail chides at 'Ornea', her lips pulled into a smile nigh unnoticeable smile, "I would like to spend time catching up, but I'm in need of your services once again."

Ornea doesn't say anything, eye wide in surprise. Her mouth opens and closes for a few times, when suddenly she lashes out and decks Abigail straight in the nose.

She falls back, clutching at her nose as streams of golden blood spill from her nose and drip all over Juggernaut.

"Fuck dammit Ornea! What the Hades was that for?!"

Percy goes to try and hold Ornea back, but she shoves him roughly and he trips over the guard rails and splashes into the water. Bianca runs over to the railing and cries out to Percy, but he just yells back that he's okay.

Abigail is back on her feet, standing by my side as she wipes ichor onto a handkerchief she had in her pocket. Ornea stomps up to her, sizing the smaller girl up as she leers into her eyes.

Then she quickly reaches out and grabs Abigail, pulling her into her chest and smothering her with a giant hug.

"Thank all the gods, even those Norse assholes, you're alive! And pretty hot still too, thought you'd be a bag of wrinkles and flab by now. You're what, sixty-two or something?!"

Abigail pushes against Ornea, struggling to free her head from being smothered by her, "I'm thirty-one hundred this summer, now stop suffocating me with your breasts dammit!"

Ornea lets go, and Abigail stumbles back, "I've got ichor in my veins now, that means Samson and I are immortals now. Athena killed us a while ago and trapped us in our amulet. Mori broke us out, but she's gone crazy or something. Annabeth believes a Titan is controlling her, but that's a whole other thing. Look, people at Camp Half Blood have been cursed and we need to go back to the Sea of Monsters to get the cure. I'm sorry to ask this, but we need your help again."

Ornea is quiet, face neutral as she stares at Abigail. Suddenly her head snaps back and she starts laughing a deep bellowing laughter.

"HA! Of course I'll help you out! You have any idea how bored the girls have been since you disappeared? We've been dying for some action! Hell, we even built this warehouse because we had nothing better to do!"

Abigail smiles, "Thank you, Ornea, I appreciate it. Now, where's my boat, I miss the old girl."

Ornea grimaces, "Right, about that…"

* * *

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THE COAST GUARD HAS MY BOAT!?"

Ornea winces and covers her ears, "Gods dude, not so loud!"

"ANSWER THE QUESTION! WHERE. IS. MY. BOAT?"

"Look dudette," Ornea sighs, running her hand through her messy hair, "The girls and I got real drunk one night, we ran a fishing boat over or something and next thing I know the Coast Guard is raiding us. We jumped in the water and swam away, but they took the boat and impounded it in their base down the way."

Abigail stares at Ornea, eye twitching as the Naiad recounts her tale, "We wanted to steal it back, but the Coast Guard keeps a surprisingly tight watch on their ships. Probably because _The Gauntlet_ is a fairly well armed military vessel for them. Though they did get some new borrowed frigates with a small cannon on them."

Percy scratches the back of his head and Bianca groans comically into her hands as Ornea finishes her drunken tale. I sigh deeply in frustration and think of some plans to get the boat back.

"Alright, listen everyone, I have an idea on how we get the boat back," I turn to Percy, "Can you move a frigate sized boat with your powers?"

He nods in confirmation, "If I'm actually in the water I can push anything around. My powers are maxed out in ocean water, moving won't be an issue."

"Alight good. You'll swim under the water undetected and push it," I turn to Ornea and a few of the other Naiads that stand behind her, "We need to draw their attention from their base, that's where you come in. You need to sink a vessel out on the water, one big enough that the Coast Guard will get involved."

"That's… kind of bad, right?" Bianca asks, looking at me fearfully, "Will they be okay if we sink their boat?"

"They'll be fine, Ornea and the Naiads will help anyone that's trapped inside get out as the boat is sinking. As the Coast Guard rushes out to help with the rescue, Percy will use his powers back at the to push the boat out to sea and the rest of us will make sure that none of the men in the base try and stop him. We'll fake a fire and distract the guards that way, a Greek fire bomb should do the trick."

Abigail looks at me slightly disturbed, "That's… quite a plan, Annabeth. People could potentially be endangered, are you sure this is the best option?"

I nod once, "It's the quickest way with the least amount of collateral. They won't shoot at us until we're out on the water, from there we use Percy and the Naiads powers to keep us safe and out speed the patrol boats they send after us. Abigail, is there a spell we can use to wipe their memories or something? Anything that'll allow us to keep the boat with no issues?"

She taps her finger on her chin, eyes looking away in thought, "The Mist should be a cover this no problem. I've never used it on a scale this big, but I think Hecate will be willing to help out since this could be traced back to camp if it gets out."

"Alright, good. Everyone knows their orders, so get to it. We'll start at nightfall."

* * *

The day quickly shifted over to the night, the halfmoon high in the sky as Ornea and her Naiads jumped into the water and sped off towards a small freighter pulling into the harbor. Percy dove into the water after them and swam towards the Coast Guard Base just a few blocks away.

Abigail, Bianca and I quickly sped towards the base and took cover around the side of a building, waiting for alarms or some other sign of a major rescue operation from within the base.

About half an hour of waiting, screeching sirens ring out from the base and various Coast Guard operatives run around the base, gathering equipment and hurriedly piling into numerous vessels. Thankfully they take their armed vessels with them, and in a matter of minutes a good portion of the bases fleet is speeding off into the nighttime waters.

We wait a few minutes for the remaining guards to settle back into their positions. Eventually they chill out and most of them retire to what I guess to be the bases lounging room.

I make a 'go-go' motion with my fingers, and Abigail and Bianca run past me and advance towards the chain fence walling off the base from the surrounding buildings. I slip through the cover of darkness and meet them along the side.

Abigail takes a pair of bolt cutters she brought and starts snipping through the links, making an opening big enough for us to slip in through. After a minute of cutting she pulls the chain back and Bianca and I slip through.

I follow behind and point out a large building farthest away from the large docks of the base. Bianca nods and slips my hat on, turning invisible and slinking away to start a fire.

Abigail and I slink back into the shadows behind a building and wait for a few minutes. After a moment the ringing sound of a fire alarm rings from the building as heavy smoke starts pouring out of the windows. We give it a moment and the guards around the base quickly rush to the burning building, grabbing fire extinguishers and trying to douse the growing flames.

Bianca appears beside Abigail and I, grinning proudly at her work of pyromancy. Abigail smiles and ruffles her hair, causing her to giggle. I roll my eyes and relay the next step of my plan.

"We've got a few minutes before the fire department gets here. Let's get to Percy and get the boat out of here."

They nod and follow behind me as I sneak off towards the docks. We pass by a building and the docks come in view. There're a few modern looking large ships, each lightly armed with white painted hulls. I pass my eyes over the docked ships, looking for the one Abigail described as her boat.

I point out a smaller white painted vessel with impressive looking guns compared to the larger and more modern boats docked by it.

"There, that's the one! Gods they must've had it for a while, they've even painted it with Coast Guard markings."

Abigail surprisingly nods appreciatively at the new look of her boat, "Huh, it actually looks much better painted white. The red trimming makes it look much better too. Gods that old grey hull looked horrible. It looks like they upgraded it too, the sensor equipment and systems are much smaller and sleeker. Good thing they kept the guns, I don't think Eris would let me have more."

"Your boat is really cool," Bianca exclaims with a big smile on her face, "I remember seeing ones like that before. Momma said they were important, she said they would hunt submarines."

"Your mother is a smart woman, that's exactly what they were designed for. _The Gauntlet_ is lightly armed, but her main cannon is fairly powerful for a ship her size. Add to that her heavy autocannons and you have a dangerous vessel."

Abigail's voice rings with pride as she smiles fondly at her boat, lost in whatever memories she had on the boat.

I am glad that we're going back to the Sea of Monsters with a more advanced warship. Clarise's old Iron Clad from the civil war was cool and all, but that thing was _horribly_ outdated. Hades, it only had the one rotating cannon ball turret.

"Alright, enough memories! We've got to snatch the boat before they put the fire out!"

They nod, faces determined and we quickly sneak off towards the dock. We hide behind a large bush as a group of five Coast Guardsmen rush past our hiding spot from the dock, carrying more fire extinguishers that they probably grabbed from one of the boats.

We give it a moment and no one else goes passed. Silently we continue down the pier and end up at the wharf our boat is moored at.

I peek my head over the water, "Percy, you there?"

His head pops up from the waves, "Right here, Wise Girl! You've gotta take the chains holding the boat off, we're not going anywhere with them still there!"

I nod at him and look back to my companions, they quickly run up the ramp onto the deck and start working on the back chains attached to the boat. I follow them onto the deck and start detaching the chain holding the front in place.

The chain clanks and rolls off the deck, splashing hard into the water. The back chain does the same, and I feel the boat slowly start drifting from the waves.

"Percy, chains are off. Get this boat moving!"

The boat suddenly rocks and almost throws me to my feet. Slowly, _The Gauntlet_ starts picking up speed, silently moving away from the docks and into the open ocean.

Abigail leans over the edge, smiling happily as the cool night breeze of the ocean water rushes over the deck. I lean against the railing and look back, the base slowly becoming smaller as we start to leave the Boston Harbor and enter the true ocean.

I hear a splashing sound and some twenty small figures launch from the water and land on the deck of the boat. Ornea and her crew cheer and holler, clearly excited to be back on their boat again.

Ornea marches over to me, big smile on her face as she slaps me roughly on the back, "All's well missy! Plan went off with no problems! We sunk that boat you pointed out and made sure none of the landlubbers drowned."

She turns around and hollers at the cheering Naiads, ordering them back to their stations. Like the flick of a switch, the crew race around with professional and smooth grace, every member pulling their weight and working the ship with amazing efficiency.

Ornea puts her hands on her hips and grins widely, "That's it, right there! Oh how I've missed bein' on the water again, thanks again Annie Bell for the help! We never would've gotten this without ya'!"

Abigail walks over to us with Bianca, giving Ornea a firm arm shake, "Glad to have the crew back together, think we'll run into Golden Boy again? It was really fun sinking the bastard bellow the waves!"

Ornea grins wickedly, "Here's hoping! Maybe he brought a bigger ship this time too!"

She throws her head back and laughs before turning around and marching towards the command tower, Bianca by her side asking all kinds of questions about the boat.

Abigail turns to me, a genuine smile on her face, "Thank you, Annabeth, I really mean it. This boat means a lot to me, I'm really happy to have it back!"

"Of course, I'm happy to help. Besides, last time I went to the Sea of Monsters I was in an old Confederate Iron Clad with a stubborn Daughter of Ares as captain. You can imagine how poorly it went."

She grimaces and excuses herself, heading to the command tower to help Ornea steer the ship. I lean against the railing and let the cool breeze blow against my face.

My worries about returning to the cursed sea have faded by a significant portion, the ship and crew taking us to their showing me that they can handle whatever is thrown their way and still come out on top.

Next stop; The Sea of Monsters!


	42. Chapter 42

**A/N: Welcome back folks, last we left off; Ornea sunk a boat, Bianca lit a building on fire, and Percy, Annabeth and Abigail robbed the Coast Guard. Yup… they're all idiots. Should be a fun chapter today, you don't rob a National Agency and just get away with it. Oh? What's that I hear? They're going to the siren's island? Now why would they do that? Well… Mnemosyne did tell Annabeth to find her on the island that 'sings'.**

* * *

 _With Annabeth, Spring 2011_

The night shifts over to the early morning only a handful of hours after we recovered Abigail's boat from the Coast Guard. Percy joined us all back on the boat deck after we got far enough out to sea. There's been no sign of the Coast Guard as of yet, but we're keeping an eye out just in case.

Abigail has been busy acting as a navigator alongside Percy with Ornea as the woman steering. I mostly leave them to themselves, they prefer the quietness for their work. Though I have stayed to watch them work a few times.

I always find myself smiling as I watch Percy work, boats being the place he finds the most comfortable and is arguably where he's the happiest.

According to Ornea and Percy, our current speed should get us to the entrance of the Sea of Monsters in only a few days' time. I thought we _could_ go faster, but Percy and the Naiads complained to me when I suggested it.

"I'm sorry Wise Girl, but we don't want to push the boat for that long! Even in the water we get tired!"

I hold my hands up in defeat, "Noted Percy, we'll just run off the engines then. Just keep us going at a good speed, the Coast Guard is sure to catch up to us soon."

He nods at me and runs off back to the command tower. I sigh and lean over the railing, letting the ocean breeze blow past my hair.

I won't lie, I'm super tempted to ask Percy to hold me up, so I can yell 'I'm the queen of the world!'.

Another hour or so passes and I'm still continuing my duty of being a look out. The winds over the water combined with the noise of the boat makes it hard to properly hear, but I faintly hear a whooping sound somewhere.

My eyes squint and I focus on my hearing, trying to drown out the loud ambient sound. It takes a few moments, but the whooping sound becomes slightly clear.

That sounds like… a helicopter!

I run towards the back half of the boat and take my binoculars and scan out over the horizon. Off in the distance I spot a small shape of white and orange, advancing fast on our position only a hundred or so feet above the water.

"HELICOPTER," I yell with all my might, pointing out towards the aircraft as it slowly grows bigger, "OUT ON OUR STERN SIDE!"

The back window to the command tower opens and Percy peeks his head out, eyes widening as the Coast Guard chopper becomes visible enough that we can make out the writing on the doors.

He flashes back inside and less then a second later a screeching alarm is ringing across the ship, Ornea's voice echoing from the speaker system.

"ALL HANDS ON DECK! I REPEAT ALL HANDS ON DECK! PHALANX, NORIS, MAN THE ANTI AIR CANNON! TAKE THAT BIRD DOWN, FIRE AT WILL!"

My eyes widen as I hear Ornea yell over the intercom to shoot the helicopter down. I quickly run up the step to the command bridge and kick the door open, causing Percy to flinch and Abigail to glance at me before going back to operating a control panel.

"Ornea, what the hell are you doing?! You'll get those men killed!"

She scoffs, back still turned as she continues operating the steering panel, "We can't risk them alerting the fleet or even the navy about our position. My girls know to aim for the tail, they should survive fine. Besides, if that chopper is on us that means it was launched from a boat nearby. We need them in the water pronto."

I grit my teeth at her callous disregard of human life but concede to her point. We could potentially be blown out of the water if any of the Coast Guard destroyers find us.

Percy's eyes soften as I slowly lumber past him towards the back window, watching two Naiads turn an anti-air and slowly line it up with the helicopter.

The quad barrels line up with the back end of the helicopter and explode in a rapid alternating series of booms, black puffs of micro explosions rocking the chopper and causing it to swerve violently away from our boat. As they're turning a round strikes just below the tail rudder and separates it completely.

Percy, Abigail and I watch with morbid curiosity as the scout chopper spins violently in the air, black smoke permeating the sky as the chopper collides with the water. Debris is thrown everywhere upon impact and the remains of the chopper sink slowly beneath the waves.

I watch neutrally as any signs of a crash disappear beneath the harsh waves, not a single man popping up from underneath the waters.

Silent fury burns inside of me as Ornea silently continues steering, the Naiad not even turning around once to acknowledge the innocent lives lost due to her actions.

"Are you happy!? Do they mean so little you can't even glance at them!?"

"…" Silence.

"They're drowning, _right now._ Nothing you want to do about it?!"

"…"

I scoff at spin around on my heel, storming past Percy who tries to call out for me to stop. I snap at him, telling him he'll be useful up here.

He looks at me like a desperate puppy, but I ignore his pleading look and storm into the lower deck. Bianca follows after me, face full of worry as I slam myself into my cot.

"Annabeth? Is everything okay?"

I glance at her from the corner of my eye and huff once, "It's… fine, don't worry about it. You're a kid, you don't need to understand."

She's quiet, eyes locked with her feet. After a moment she angles her head up, dark eyes seemingly boring into my soul. I can't help but shiver at the dead look on her face.

"Those men are dead. I know, I felt it."

Goosebumps roll down my arms and I start shivering, the room even going so cold that I can see my breath.

"Death is natural for demigods, it looms over us all like a great big shadow. What's done is done. I'm only a girl, but have a far more intimate understanding of death then you ever will. Do not mourn for those you lost, only ever rejoice with the knowledge they've traded their worldly torment for an eternity of peace. Embrace death as an old friend and you'll never fear again."

And then she's gone, sliding out of my room like a wraith. The cold lingers for a moment and disappears, but I still find myself shivering. Not from the cold mind you, rather from how… _deathly_ Bianca was.

Hera's sake she reminded me of the kid from The Omen back there! I don't think even Nico has made me feel so close to death just with his presence before.

I scold myself for underestimating her, she's a Child of Hades! One of the few demigods born from the Big Three! One of the five most powerful demigods in the world right now!

Her philosophy of death is… extreme for me, but I understand the point she was trying to get across.

You can't save everyone, and demigods will always have to make tough calls that end with death. Demigods can only ever look forward, never back. Looking back leads to defeat, forward is the future, the path to victory.

It's one of Percy's amazing skills, his ability to just always continue no matter what happens to those around him.

I frown and hold a fist under my chin ala Thinker pose. I suppose I should go an apologize, I was nasty back up there. An especial apology to Ornea too, she's only looking out for our best interests.

* * *

We bought ourselves a great deal of time when we shot the helicopter out of the sky, but the Coast Guard employs technology beyond what we're capable of making ourselves invisible to.

Only a scant day after we sunk the chopper beneath the waves, Bianca spotted an approaching vessel far off to the horizon.

Abigail used some advanced scoping binoculars to scan the ship visibly from our position what must be a mile and a half away from the mystery boat.

After a few minutes she closes them up and confirms our fears. A Coast Guard frigate is tailing us.

If we could identify their ship with outdated equipment, then they for sure know who we are. Which itself means that the rest of the Coast Guard fleet will be storming towards us soon.

Percy and a few other Naiads dive over the side and use their powers to literally push our boat faster, almost doubling our speed.

This was all for naught however, the other ship picks up speed and matches us, keeping a distance far away but still keeping us firmly in their sights.

Our slow yet tense pursuit continues for several hours, more ships slowly appearing far out over the horizon and keelhauling it towards us. Another hour passes, and a proper fleet of warships have amassed at our stern.

Half a dozen destroyers and other assorted escort ships tail behind, slowly gaining on us.

Suddenly the largest ship in their fleet BOOMS as the water besides us explodes, an artillery shell firing what is likely a warning shot.

Abigail curses loudly besides me in the command tower, "Fucking Hades! Damn those ships, they fire too far for our speed!"

"Can we do _anything_ to make us faster? If we can get to the Sea of Monsters they should turn around, the magic is too strong for them to follow us!"

"Not unless we can get a power boost to your boyfriend. We can only hope our armor holds, I don't know if the upgrades Amphitrite made for it can hold out against modern weapons!"

"Ah quit yer belly achin," Ornea scolds at us, "We've got Atlantean armor on this boat, the Coast Guard has nothing better then a big boat with little guns and paper armor! They've got nothing that'll sink us, we have to worry if they hit our deck or not. A deck shot might damage the engines and half our speed, we'll be boarded surely after. Me crew is the best on the water but fending a bunch of machine gun toting guardsmen might be asking too much from us!"

Another round explodes off our port side, "Fuck they've got good aim! Abigail, see if you can do something on our autocannons, they might be able to hit the rounds in the air!"

She nods and I follow her down towards the deck, maneuvering the busy pathways and meeting a pair of Naiads working frantically on one of the cannons.

"Girls! What's the hold up?! We needed those guns shooting those shells down half an hour ago!"

"We're trying our best ma'am" One Naiad shouts, "We can't aim them ourselves quick enough and the computer the Coast Guard added can't process fast enough to shoot artillery rounds!"

One more round explodes off to the side, shrapnel pinging off the armored hull, "Dammit, _The Gauntlet_ is too old for this! Annabeth can your laptop handle syncing up to the computers?!"

"Worth a shot, it won't hurt to try!"

I take my laptop out of my backpack and start sorting through some of Daedalus's files, trying to find the file he swiped from the military for anti-artillery counter systems.

There, the C-RAM system!

With some help from Abigail borrowing Samson's skill with computer language we manage to sync up the program to the autocannons, using the improved sensor systems the Coast Guard added to _The Gauntlet_ to give the old guns the right improvements they need to successfully use the new program.

The cannon beside us whirs and turns automatically, a series of rapid gun blasts exploding from the barrel as heavy rounds fly out across the water.

Our breaths collectively hitch as we watch the rounds sail in a path towards the large enemy ship. Our quick tech skills come around for us in the end as half way between us and the Coast Guard a massive cloud of black smoke explodes over the water.

The system works!

Our gun fires by itself again and another explosion splashes out across the water far away from us. Several more ships from the fleet fire, and both guns work over time, loud explosive sounds of heavy turrets screaming across the water.

A round pings off against the side of our hull, the explosions rocking the ship and causing angry waves to crash over onto the deck.

"We can't hold out against concentrated fire! Eventually enemy rounds will make it through the defenses!"

Dammit, they're good!

"Do what you can crewwoman! I'll try and find out another plan!"

The two Naiads salute and run off towards other sections of the ship, likely finding some ways to help their comrades out.

Abigail and I race back to the command tower, maybe Ornea has some ace in the hole I don't know about?

I throw the door open and we crowd around Ornea as she frantically works at her command console.

"Ornea! We've got a defense network running, but it's not enough to keep completely immune. There's too many boats for us to handle alone!"

Our boat rocks again, almost throwing us all to our feet as the big ship scores a direct against our starboard hull.

Ornea curses a string of foul words and starts slamming her hands down on her control panel, "Don't matter what we do now, the sea is dead ahead!"

I look out through the windows. Over the horizon peaks of jagged rocks reach high into the sky, the iconic cut in the cliffs wide open and inviting.

Of course we all know what waits for us there, _Scylla and Charybdis._

"Tell yer' boy toy to get his ass up on deck with ma' girls, it's not safe for them to be in these waters! We've got no choice lass, we've gotta run the boat full speed into the channel if we're gonna stay ahead of the Guardsmen. Hold on tight, we've got less then five minutes till impact!"

I've said it before and I'll say it again, Ornea is literally crazy!

I poke my head out the window and scream down at the crew over the roar of the defense cannons, ordering them to get everyone out of the water and prepare to run _The Gauntlet_ full speed through Scylla and Charybdis.

The Naiads eyes widen comically for a split second before they race over to the sides and scream at the water. Almost a dozen figure launch from the water, Percy stepping forward and yelling over the guns.

"ARE YOU CRAZY?! WE WON'T SURVIVE RUSHING INTO THE SEA THIS WAY! WE'LL DESTROY THE BOAT!"

"NO CHOICE SEAWEED BRAIN! WE CAN'T SLOW DOWN OR WE'LL GET HIT BY THOSE SHIPS! THIS IS OUR ONLY CHOICE!"

He looks at me like I'm insane but grumbles and starts ordering some Naiads around, telling them to do what they can with their powers from up on the deck.

I close the window and turn back to Ornea and Abigail, the two girls working crazily at various controls.

"Crew's on board and getting ready!"

I get a grunt in response and hold onto a control panel, bracing myself as a series of stray rounds rock our boat violently in both directions.

The looming peaks of the Sea of Monsters grow rapidly, _The Gauntlet_ continuing full speed as Ornea aims our boat straight into the channel.

I quickly peak back and see the Coast Guard fleet slowing to a halt far out of firing range. Good, they've given up. But we're not in clear waters yet!

"Aim left, we might be able to out speed Charybdis!"

Ornea nods and spins the wheel, our boat almost drifting across the water as we go dangerously close to the inner cliff walls.

Sparks fly and metal _shrieks_ as we slam into the side of the cavern, throwing everyone but Ornea to her feet as she fights fiercely against the steering wheel.

"Damn. You. Bastard. TURN!"

She grunts as her muscles strain, Ornea showing her impressive as she pulls the ship away from the grinding edge. However, she takes us too far.

 _The Gauntlet_ suddenly veers sharply right, putting us in range of Scylla, the beast not yet striking from wherever she hides in the shadows.

"Ornea!"

"I know dammit!" She takes the microphone and screams orders into it, "ALL BATTERIES AIM HIGH! CONCENTRATE YOUR FIRE AND HIT THE SHADOWS!"

All guns on _The Gauntlet_ swivel around and aim high, heavy machine guns and cannons firing high into the cliffside, orange light vaguely illuminating a hideous form that screams a primal roar.

Rocks and boulders fall from the cliff, narrowly missing our boat as the Naiad crew continue their fierce barrage against Scylla. The monster's roars shake the cavern even greater then the explosions, the beast flinching under a ceaseless coordination of fire power but not actually taking any real damage.

A head goes to lash out at us, only to be smashed by a massive boulder colliding with her head. A sick crunch echoes in the cavern and the single head reels in, torrents of blood leaking out of every orifice.

We continue forward with great speed, but progressively slowdown as we smash through boulder after boulder that sticks up out of the water.

Ornea yells a command into the microphone, and a flat metal box on the deck spins around and aims high upwards. A Naiad pulls a hatch on the top back and unveils twenty-four mean looking mortar bombs point at an angle upwards.

She yells for the crew to fire at will, and one after another the mortars launch from their housing and slams into Scylla. Color explosions illuminate the dark caver and booming echoes ring outwards across the entire channel.

The heads of Scylla shriek one last time before melting away into the shadows, a guttural hiss being the last sound she makes before the heavy weapons fire dies down and is replaced by the cheers of our crew crying out in victory!

Ornea sighs deeply and relaxes back in her chair, the Naiad being perfectly content to let the momentum carry us out of the channel and into the eerily calm open waters of the Sea of Monsters.

"So… anyone want a beer?"

* * *

Time has always been… off in the Sea of Monsters. At moments you feel like an hour has passed when it's been a full day, and at other times you feel like it's been a week and it's only been a couple of hours.

Percy and I were relaxing in our cots together when a sudden sense of _wrongness_ fills my insides. I cry out and clutch my stomach, faintly hearing Percy asking what's wrong.

 _You are near._

Tears spill down my cheeks as the pain becomes unbearable, my body convulsing into a series of horrible tremors.

 _Go now to the island that sings. I await thee. Come alone and accept my prize, fulfill your destiny as my harbinger. Heed my call now Child of Athena, and great things shall be unleashed in your wake._

The _horrible_ intrusive feeling passes as my convulsions cease, leaving me sweating and exhausted as Percy screams for help.

Abigail and the medic appear in the room and start hovering over me, Abigail feeding me nectar as the medic feels my vitals.

I pass everything with flying colors, my exhaustion fading completely as I return to my normal equilibrium.

"What happened Annabeth? You looked like you were being possessed or something!"

I take a big gulp of water, letting the cool refreshment hydrate me.

"I wouldn't say possessed, but something was definitely pushing its power into me. I think I know who, it must've been Mnemosyne."

"Mnemosyne? Didn't you had a dream about her earlier? She must want you to do whatever she said now! Gods of course she had to be super dramatic and almost kill you!"

I roll my eyes at Percy's theatrics, "She's an elder Titan, they were never about subtlety. She talked to me and said I had to go to an 'island that sings' and I had to do it now. Abigail, what's the nearest island to us that fits that description?"

"Oh… that's… an issue," She says grimacing, "The closest island to us is the Island of the Sirens."

* * *

"Annabeth, you _can't_ go! They'll eat you alive!"

"Percy, I'll be fine! Abigail's jacket makes me completely immune to their songs! Besides, Sirens are weak compared to most monsters, they'll flee as soon as I brandish a sword at them!"

"I-no-you can't- please just… be _safe!_ No one's resisted their magic before, how can you be sure you'll be immune?"

I give him a sweet smile and peck him on the cheek, "Have faith Percy, Samson's skill with magic is amazing. I have faith in him, so you should too."

He wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me close, holding me in a tender embrace.

"…Yeah, I'll have faith. Come back soon, my heart can't handle the thought of you being alone!"

I pull myself away from him and step into a dingy, a crewwoman manning a winch and slowly lowering me into the water. Percy and Bianca watch me lower with fear clear in their eyes. Abigail's face is stoic, but I can tell she has full faith in me.

I nod once at everyone on deck and detach my boat from the ropes. The engine starts up and I quickly race out across the water, the sun hitting the horizon behind me as the darkness of night slowly begins to crawl across the sky.

The waters are eerily quiet as I approach the fog coated island. I remember the last time I got this near I could hear the Siren's song clear as day, but that's not the case this time.

Everything is silent. No songs or wind, even the splashing water seems nearly silent.

I take my boat slowly into the heavy fog that permeates the entire island. Huge jagged rocks shoot up from the water, pile and pieces of wrecked ships, ancient and new alike litter the shallow waters. Bones of all kinds hang loosely on the rocks, skulls picked clean white seem to stare at me as I take my boat onto the volcanic shores.

It takes a moment to carefully drag the boat out of the water and tie it down, but I find a sturdy pile of metal to tie it up to.

Something crumbles to my right and I quickly spin around and point my drakon bone sword at it on instinct.

I find myself pointing at a large rock, but something doesn't feel right. I squint my eyes and try to see through the fog more clearly.

Slowly the rock I thought I was looking at twitches, rising upwards as the rock texture opens up to reveal they were nasty wings the entire time.

My heart pumps faster as the wings open, revealing a nude woman with birds feet and solid glowing red eyes. The head twitches to the side like a bird and looks at me curiously, mouth opening and closing as though she were singing, only no sounds escape her lips.

She's completely silent!

The siren silently snarls at me, likely mouthing her frustrations as if I could actually hear her. She advances on me and I quickly swipe at her, clipping her wing and throwing several feathers to the ground.

She silently shrieks and retreats quickly backwards, climbing up onto a huge section of destroyed ship and cowering childishly behind some loose boards.

Slowly I start backing away from her, keeping a constant eye contact as the siren mumbles silently, occasionally peeking out from her cover before quickly hiding behind it again.

I find myself stepping onto a stony path, and I quickly spin around and sprint up it. I follow the path, looking behind me several times to see if anything follows me, thankfully nothing does and my heart pumps just a bit more calmly as I continue down the long path.

After half an hour's of hiking a strange ringing start in my ears. I rub my forehead as a growing migraine starts pounding at my head.

The pain passes, and I suddenly find myself being taken over by pure instincts. It's hard to describe, but I kind of went on autopilot. I just _knew_ where I _had_ to go, and my body moved automatically, taking me off a side path that rounds a sharp corner.

I regain my senses and find myself lost in a massive flat section of the island, the fog so dense that I can't even see more then a few feet in front of me.

Despite my best efforts, I slowly over the course of an hour of aimless wandering start panicking. Sweat trickles down my face as I eventually start totally freaking out.

My mind wanders with thousands of panicked thoughts when it all stops as I feel my foot tap down on an incredibly smooth surface.

I look down and realize I'm stepping on an ornately carved tile path. My legs move numbly, and I start following the tiles, hoping desperately that it's my salvation and escape from this wretched place!

Suddenly I stop as the tiles give way to a beautiful yet chipped and aged marble step. My eyes trail slowly up each and every step, continuing farther upwards as I take in the beautiful entrance way before me.

Pillars easily several stories high reach into the sky, marble statues of the nine muses stand high on the tops steps, seemingly beckoning me to step forward.

Even though the fog mutes all the colors, giving everything a pale grey tone, I can tell that the colors of this place in open sunlight would be some of the most beautiful pieces of architecture I've ever seen.

Suddenly it clicks in my mind what this place _has_ to be.

The Lost Library of Alexandria!


	43. Chapter 43

**A/N: Time for a spooky chapter! Truehero and I came up with a pretty gnarly enemy for todays chapter. Something real gross and wicked for Annabeth to protect herself against. Also, today we're wrapping up the quest for Ram. By the end of this chapter the quest to save Cabin Nine will be completed.**

* * *

 _End of the Quest to Save Cabin Nine_

 _With Annabeth, spring 2011_

"AAAAAGGGGHHHHHH!"

I'm shaken out of my awe inspired stupor by the manic and shrill cry of… _something_ in pure agony!

Goosebumps roll down my arms, the sheer sound of whatever is screaming like that making me feel even more on edge then when I was stuck in this fog!

Quickly I run up the stairs and into the main gallery of the Library of Alexandria. Normally I would spend as long as possible in this place, soaking in the architecture and maybe swiping a one scroll or a couple dozen from the tall bookshelves.

Too bad I'm freaking the fuck out man!

I run through many winding halls, peaking over my shoulder every so often to make sure that there's no Freddy or Jason right behind me.

Suddenly my foot catches on something and I trip over it, throwing myself onto the hard tile and knocking the wind right from my lungs.

It takes me a minute to regain my breath, by my self-control and analytical mind return with it. I rub my sore head and push myself back up to my feet along the wall. Looking around I see that the thing I tripped over was a very impressive and life-like model of a Siren.

The thing must've tipped over at some point, perhaps when whoever brought the library here took it from Alexandria it fell over in transit?

I kneel down and run my hand along the feathers, only to immediately pull it back when I realize that this thing is _real!_

My swords out in half a second, pointing at the beast as I wait for the beast to make it's move! Except that… nothing happens.

The Siren has no reaction when I poke it with my sword, so I decide to cut the side open. Maybe then it will react?

The blade opens up a nice long gash along the length of the toppled monster, but only stuffing an straw spills out of the cut in place of guts and blood.

I sigh deeply and pinch the bridge of my nose. Gods I'm an idiot!

I put my sword away and squat down next to the strange corpse of the monster that someone somehow preserved to prevent it from turning into dust. Gods Samson would freak to have this thing in his house!

Now I wonder…

I grasp the clawed hand of the Siren and slice it off with a nice clean cut from my sword. I hold the appendage up and wait and see if it will turn into dust.

Nope, it's completely preserved!

The hand goes in my little travel bag I brought with me and I rise back to my feet and better take in the building now that I'm not freaking out.

Looking down the hallways of the building I scowl I disapprovingly as now I truly understand the state of this place.

The walls and tiles of this place are crumpled and cracked, age and what looks like fire has damaged much of what I can see in the building. Windows are blown out completely and there's even some giant holes in the wall that looks like a cannonball or something crashed through it.

It's such a sad state of being looking at this place, what was once a wonder of the ancient world is now a crumbling ruin. A place of learning abandoned by the mortals of the ancient world and now taken to a remote and desolate island where no mortal or demigod can safely step foot again.

I shake my head clear of my distracting thoughts and continue deeper into the library. Now's not the time to be overthinking things, Mnemosyne brought me here for a reason and it has to be important if she's dragging me out to a place like this!

Over the course of an hour I try my best to navigate through the crumpled and destroyed building. Some hallways are completely collapsed and force me to find another route that takes me to a section of building that's missing entirely.

As time continues on I become more and more frustrated, the layout of this place is complete ass and I don't know where I'm going at all!

Eventually I end up at a huge pair of double doors that extend twelve feet up in the air. Dear gods this _better_ be where this bitch is at!

With a grunt I push the heavy doors open, slowly they groan as I force them out of my way. With a final heavy push I throw them open, the doors swiveling around and slamming into the walls as I march haughtily into the inner sanctum.

There, resting in a chair with a long scroll in her arms, is a familiar head of rich auburn hair. Her deep green eyes stare at me neutrally as I approach, neither of us saying a word as we stare one another.

Grey eyes meet green, Titan and demigod together, old generation and new generation.

"Hello, dear Annabeth," She starts, "I see you've arrived. How was the trip?"

"Deadly," I say dryly.

And now we're back to staring at each other… okay, this is just a _little_ awkward. She blinks a few times. I do too. Wonderful, we're _bonding_.

"Soooo… what's uh… up?"

Mnemosyne tilts her head and looks at me blankly for a minute. I scratch my arm absentmindedly and wait for her to say anything.

It takes her a few minutes.

"The… sky… and clouds," She says carefully, as though she was explaining to a small toddler, "The Sun and moon, even those fun little aero-planes mortals like nowadays."

I just… stare at her for a minute or two. Is she _actually_ serious right now? I pinch the bridge of my nose and groan softly, gods this is already annoying me, and we haven't really even talked yet!

"I… apologize for my behavior. My siblings always described me as being odd… Kronos used to enjoy saying I talked with the same awareness of a mortal that was beat really hard over the head with a club…"

"…Okay?"

She takes the scroll and rolls it back up and rises from her chair. She walks gently over to one of the many shelves and places the scroll neatly into a cubby.

"I thank you for coming out far this way, so few care to visit anymore."

Well, I mean _didn't_ want to come here, this place is dangerous and I'm beginning to fear Siren's aren't the only monster that call this place their home.

"There is something I would ask of you," She reaches into a cubby and takes out a small bottle full of a cloudy blue liquid, "Give this vial to your sister, it contains memories taken by Lethe. Allow my niece to return to her true self, it is vital for the world that she becomes one once again."

"Wait, _Abigail_ is your niece? She was-she _is_ a demi-titan, who was her sire then? What does that make them now? A demigod _and_ a demi-titan?"

Mnemosyne smiles lightly, "Is there really a difference? Divine is divine, no matter what titles are placed upon them. She has been hiding from herself for far too long, and with that _woman_ rising from the pit piggy backing off that Child of Hecate, now is the time. Her father, Hyperion, attempted to raise _her_ from the depths, but she had already dipped herself in the Lethe. You must make her remember, a Titan's legacy is not something one should forget."

I have to practically slap myself to shake my daze away. Okay, recap time. Abigail is a demi-titan and a daughter of Hyperion. She's also dipped herself in the river Lethe and now the Titaness of memory wants her to remember her legacy.

This leaves the question about why Mnemosyne cares about Abigail and her memories at all! What scares me is what will happen to Abigail if she recovers her lost memories? Will she become different? Will she become evil and turn against us?

I almost don't want to give this potion to Abigail, but denying someone the right to their memories is an awful and incredibly selfish thing to do.

Mnemosyne bends down and places the precious vial in my hands, "I thank you for your assistance dear, my niece means greatly to me. Oh, and do tell her to drop by after everything is well and done. Hecate and I have a proposition from her when she becomes whole."

She smiles one last time and pats me lovingly on the head. Then she turns and starts walking away, and with each step she takes she slowly becomes more translucent until she fades away completely.

I stand alone in the inner sanctum for just a moment, absorbing all the details and running all the potential scenarios through my mind.

No matter how many dark and dangerous scenarios I imagine will happen, no matter what I come back to in the end is that it's all up to Abigail really. These are her memories, she retains the right to do with them as she pleases.

Then it suddenly hits me. That bitch just left me here!

Oh dammit, now I have to sneak my self off this island. And whatever was making those horrifying moans out in the fog will surely still be there too.

I look around at the bookshelves in this room. Well… she's not here to tell me _not_ to take any of these…

* * *

It ended up taking me an embarrassingly long time to find my way out of the fog, but I manage to end up back in the less foggy area of the island. As I climb up a small incline that leads back to the island pathway, I hear what sounds like a man pitifully whining and moaning.

A sudden feeling of anxiety builds up in my gut, like a dangerous beast is just around the corner.

I decide to listen to my gut instincts are unsheathe my sword, readying myself for any nasty monster to pop up from somewhere and cut the bastard down.

Slowly and silently I bring myself over the edge and back up on level ground. My eyes widen as the bluish ghostly form of a man moans and cries in the center of the road, head cradled in his hands as he wails pitifully about random things that I can't make out.

I approach the figure carefully, but still keeping my hand thoroughly gripped on my sword, "Hello? Sir are you okay?"

The moaning and raving suddenly stops. Slowly the figure removes their hands from their face and spins around to face me. Their eyes are shaking, face etched in a manic and hungry expression as they leer at me with their eyes.

I take a step back as their eyes roam over me, not in desire but rather like I'm the most exquisite meal they've every laid their ghostly eyes upon.

Another step back, "Sir, are you okay?"

They ignore me and take a step forward, and I take one back, "Hey, dude! Keep your distance or I'll cut you down, I won't worn you again!"

Their mouth opens agape and they start gutturally growling at me. Their eyes narrow to slits and they start raving horribly at me, "FLESH! GIVE ME YOUR FLESH! FRESH AND JUICY, GIVE IT TO ME! IT IS **MINE!** "

Suddenly they lunge at me with a primal and insane roar! I slice at them with my sword, but it passes right through them!

They collide with me and I'm blown back to my feet. It takes me a moment to regain my bearings, but when I look around the spirit of the man is nowhere to be seen.

I go to stand, but my legs feel numb and collapse beneath me. My hand starts shaking and slowly reaches to my sword laying just out of reach. My eyes widen as my arms moves on its own, I reach out with my opposite hand and start struggling against it.

It would be comedic as hell for someone to watch me fight my own body if half of me wasn't trying to grab a sword by itself and do something that's probably super dark.

My body throws itself around, legs flurrying out as my evil arm grabs the sword from the ground and starts swiping around the air crazily. I grit my teeth and grab my possessed arm with my other one as it tries to bring the sword and drive it into my leg.

I flush red as I struggle fiercely against my arm, losing the battle as the sword point draws closer to my leg. I hiss in pain as the point of my sword pokes into my flesh and pierces the skin, pushing forward at least a couple inches into my own flesh.

Having enough shit from whatever is possessing me, I focus my thoughts inward and use all of my willpower as a Child of Athena to tell my brain to overpower the thing overwriting my nerves.

My head snaps and bashes against the dirt as an overwhelming feeling of relief washes over me. I sigh in relief as I find myself having complete control over my actions once again.

I try and rise to my feet again, but the blood pooling out of the wound on my legs stops me from rising to anything past a kneel.

The ghost that must've been trying to kill me raves maniacally around in front of me, clutching and clawing at his own eyes as he screeches in fury and pain. A thought rings through my head and slowly I open up my bag and grab the clawed hand from it.

Nico explained to me a while ago that spirits have a weakness against the objects or at least symbolically the things that killed them in the first place.

Like if the spirit of someone who was murdered came back, the knife used to kill them while they were alive can also be used to force their spirit to the underworld, instant and violent exorcism essentially.

Now if this spirit is here on the Siren's island, that almost assuredly means that Sirens were the ones that did him in in the first place.

I grip the Siren claw as the raving spirit turns to me, eyes hollow like they were ripped out or something. He growls and goes to lunge at me again, but this time he shrieks out and peddles away in fear as long glowing cuts form across his chest from the claw.

"AHH! NOT AGAIN, NOOO!"

The spirit screams out madly as his body flickers violently against the ground before he explodes in a puff of blue light that falls to the ground as dust.

I sigh in relief as the ghost… dies I guess. I hiss suddenly as I realize I still have a big sword cut in my leg. I reach into my pocket and take out a small vial of nectar. I pop it open and down a good dose of the magical liquid.

Sweet relief washes over my body as the magic works its way at the wound on my leg, the nasty cut clotting quickly as the blood stops flowing from the wound. I give it a minute for the skin to scab over, but still greatly aware of the fact that I won't be able to walk quickly or even run at all for at least a day.

I rise with a grunt and slowly start limping down the path when suddenly I start hearing a series of mad and shrill screams off in the distance. My heart pumps as I realize they're nearly identical to the same screams of the ghost that tried to kill me just a second ago.

Thinking quickly, I reach down to my pant leg and rip off the bloody shred. I hurtle the bloody rag off into the fog and start hobbling into the trees. If the spirits here are attracted to blood, the hopefully they'll go after the super bloody rag before hunting me.

I'm not sure how much time I'll have, but I know it won't be much.

I hobble into the forest as quickly as I can and keep up the pace for at least half an hour. I tried to keep my direction in heading towards the beach my boat is docked at, but I must've lost my sense of direction as the forest continues on and on, never ending.

Deciding that my current course of action is pointless, I stop next to a decrepit overgrown structure that looks like an old temple and rest against a large destroyed pillar and catch my breath.

My injured leg protests angrily at me, so I take another sip of nectar and melt against the pillar.

I start to close my eyes, when they snap open as I hear the distant and shrill cries and ravings of the approaching spirits. I stand to start running again, but my leg catches in a hole and I topple indignantly onto the ground.

Oh fuck me, did I just do a move some blonde bimbo in a horror movie would do?!

Well, of course I did since I clutch at my ankle that hisses at me in pain. Great, it looks like I just rolled my godsdamn ankle!

Goosebumps roll across my arm and I freeze. Slowly I turn around as three ghostly and deformed men emerge from the brush, their hungry and maniacal eyes meeting my prone form.

Slowly I reach for the claw, moving carefully as to not encourage the spirits to charge or anything.

Suddenly the back most ghost screams out and explodes in a shower of blue light. The two specters turn around but follow their comrades' fate as a different spirit swings a ghostly sword through them.

The spirit wipes invisible sweat from their forehead and turns to me. I take the brief pause between us to take in this spirit's appearance and just how different it is from the others.

Firstly, is that his eyes are crisp and normal, the shine and analytical look to them suggests that he's a smart individual. Unlike the other spirits that were deformed and vaguely demonic looking, this young man is completely normal looking. If he had skin, then he would look just like a human.

His tunic is old looking, Victorian era if I were to ball park it. His features are soft and welcoming, and his short hair flows in the air as though it were under water.

He reaches a careful hand out to me, "Ma'am, are you uninjured?"

The clawed had whips out, purposefully missing the strangers hand, "Keep your hands away from me! I'm not repeating what happened with the other one!"

"The other… oh, I see. One of the others must've tried to possess you correct? It's a poor fate many have suffered here before. Those who die on this island are trapped here as spirits, eventually they go mad and develop a hunger for mortal flesh. I was a crewman many moons ago, our ship crashed here because of our bewitched captain. One by one my mates were devoured by the Sirens, but I survived by putting candle wax in my ear. But the spirits... they got me. They… they forced me to carve and consume my own flesh until I too became a spirit, trapped here forsaken ever since."

I roll my eyes as the spirit rattles off about his sad tale, "Oh my gods will you stop talking my ears off! I didn't want your life story, I want you to keep your distance!"

"Fine by me," He says holding his hands up in the air, "I was just being friendly, but I see that's not what you're worried with."

"Of course I'm not worried about that! There's an island full of ghosts that want to control my body and make me eat myself, that's just a _tiny_ bit more worrying then your stupid politeness!"

He gives me sad puppy eyes but quickly flinches and stops as I give him a harsh glare.

"…Right, my apologies. I was just… excited to be able to talk with someone sane, and a Child of Athena to boot! I haven't spoken to my kin in such a long time."

"Wait, you're a Child of Athena as well? I'm surprised you weren't captaining the ship then, rather embarrassing for an Athena demigod to be so low on the totem pole."

"Haha," He states dryly, "I'm a slow riser, so shut it! Anyways, my name is Jon Bullion, can you deign to give me your name?"

Jon does a fancy bow that seems like something a theatre nerd would do, but I can't help but feel slightly charmed.

"My name is Annabeth, it's a pleasure Jon."

He smiles and walks over to me as I hold myself up against the pillar, "Your ankle appears swollen, perhaps dislocated. I would offer to help, yet I lack flesh to help set it unfortunately."

"You can't have my body!" I snap, anticipating him to try and sneak his way off the island with my body, using me as some kind of suit for his own purposes.

"Calm yourself, please! I have died long ago; the mortal world is no longer for me. Besides, I would be… uncomfortable, you could say. I-uh, I prefer to stay a man."

My eyes narrow as he gives me a small smile, "Swear it, swear on the Styx you're truthful."

"I swear upon the Styx I will never touch you without your consent, and I shall never mean undo harm unto you."

He forms a small cross above his heart, and I sigh and let my shoulder sag as I relax.

"Thank you, I appreciate the security. I'm sorry to rush you, but can you point me to the beach? My friends are waiting for me and I have to get back to them soon!"

Jon shakes his head sadly and looks as the sky begins to darken, "It would be unwise, the night brings the rest of the spirits out. Midday tomorrow would be the safest, then you can reach the beach and be the safest. My kin fear the Sirens even in death, once we get close enough to the beach none more will pursue."

I sigh deeply and reach down to my ankle, Jon goes to stop me, but I quickly grab it and pull up hard, the bone popping as my ankle is aligned back in place. I grit my teeth and quickly take another swig of nectar, letting the godly drink numb my pain.

"Not the proper way, but works none the less," Jon states dryly, "I suggest you huddle up in the ruins here, my ghostly scent will cover up the scent of your blood."

I nod at him and limp into the shaded and most structurally sound part of the ruined building. I plop myself down on the dirt inside and relax as best I can, "Thank you, Jon. Think you can watch over me while I sleep?"

"Of course, dear sister."

* * *

I didn't die in my sleep thankfully, and I woke up in he same place I fell asleep, so Jon never tried doing any kind of spirit stuff to me while I was unconscious. Looks like he's upholding his word he made on the Styx.

"Sister, the day is rising to its mid, I suggest we move now while the specters are mostly hidden."

I've talked more with Jon as I awoke in the morning, learning about his history some more and just generally getting to know him.

He's certainly charming, I'll give him that. I was right when I guessed he was involved with the theatre, the captain of his ship was the director of a popular stage group that was en route to England to perform for the King, but a freak storm blew them into the Sea of Monsters where the Sirens drew them in and devoured the bewitched crew Save Jon who managed to cover his ears before falling victim to the spirts haunting the inner island.

"Good, let's be on our way. Where should we be heading to?"

He rests his fist under his chin, "The open forest is dangerous, many spirits live in caves and tunnels buried within. There exists an old decrepit villa down the way, I've only seen a few spirits there over the years, and never in the day either. I say it is the best place to travel towards as a road leads down to the beach."

I nod at him, "Then lead on, I want to be at that beach as soon as possible."

"Many would find it foolish to charge _towards_ Sirens."

"I'm not just anybody, and I'm immune to their songs anyway."

"I-Immune you say? How, none besides an immortal can resist their voices!"

"Long story cut short, but so long as I wear this jacket I am immune to being cursed. Though a spirit from before was able to possess me, that must be different from cursing then. I think my brother designed this jacket to protect against magic, not spirits. He'll have to know about that, he doesn't like there being flaws with his gear."

I turn back to Jon who's looking away in thought, "Jon?"

He flinches and looks at me with wide eyes, "O-oh! I apologize, I was merely lost in thought! Your sibling sounds amazing if he's skilled enough as a wizard to counteract Siren magic!"

Jon extends an arm and points me towards the path to take to the villa with a big and mischievous smile on his face. I raise an eyebrow at his weird expression but ignore it and allow him to guide me towards my safety.

Reaching the villa he told me about took no time at all, only an hour really. My leg healed a bunch over the night, but I still can't run very well.

Looking about the ruins, it takes a minute of thinking back at my knowledge of history to identify this place as being an ancient Greek villa, and a fancy one at that!

Or well, it _was._ The entire place is crumpled and in ruins, the pillars collapsed long ago, and the once majestic tiled ceramic rooves are shattered on the floor and overtaken by wild grape vines.

A foul smell crosses my nose and I can't help but grimace, dozens of feathers litter the grounds and now I realize why so few ghosts spend any time here.

The Sirens nested here once but looking at the age of the feathers I can tell many years have passed since they roosted here.

"Sirens were here, but it seems they moved on long ago."

"Why would they spend time here," Jon asks, "There's nothing but ruins here?"

"Sirens were once Nymph servants of Persephone; this villa must've been theirs or something and they got nostalgic. Judging from the claw marks on the stone they destroyed it in a fit of rage since they'll never be able to be seen as beautiful anymore, Demeter's curse must be a sore topic for them even now."

"Why would Demeter curse the Sirens if they were handmaidens to her own daughter? That seems rather foolish for a mother to do so to her daughter's servants."

"Demeter isn't a very conscientious goddess. She turned the Sirens into what they are now to roam the skies to find her daughter when Hades kidnapped her. They were forgotten however and roosted here, doomed forever to drag sailors to their deaths to fill the voids in their hearts."

"They're doing a poor job then if they're lonely. I don't think _eating_ your way to a man's heart is a way to his metaphorical heart."

"They're cursed, it's likely they don't even know that they're doing wrong. It's a tragic life for them but only Demeter can cure them, and I doubt she'll do it soon if ever."

Jon looks away, face strained as he's clearly upset learning of the unfortunate backstory of some of the most infamous and tragic monsters in Greek mythology. His eyes widen as he points out a small white shape resting in a pile of dirt.

I limp over to it and pull the shape free from the dirt and spin it around in my hands. It takes just a second to realize what I'm holding, but it's clearly an egg!

"Is that… you don't think that is a Siren's egg, do you?"

"I can't- I honestly don't know! There's nothing in anything I've read saying what the offspring of a Siren could be! Sirens are female, they can't reproduce with another Siren. So what fathered this then?"

Jon looks down at some dirt just a stone's throw away and points out a skull resting atop a pile of strewn bones.

"Seems like an unfortunate sailor bedded a Siren before being devoured. Poor sod, shacking a bird in an enchanted haze only to be devoured after. What will you do with the egg then? There's knowing what will be born from it."

I think about this peculiar egg for a minute as I study it. Jon is right, this could hatch into a Siren or some other kind of creature, but maybe it will skip the curse and be born as a Nymph or something. Either way, Samson and I are _totally_ going to experiment on it if it hatches!

The egg goes neatly into my bag and Jon raises an eyebrow at me but says nothing as I shoo him along.

Our path from the villa takes us down and into an old abandoned and likely _literal_ ghost town. The place is small, closer to a village over anything else. It rests firmly on the coast and likely in ancient times acted as a port town before the Sirens claimed it as their home.

For being ancient, the town is remarkably well kept. None of the buildings are really toppled, only cracked and overgrown with vegetation.

Jon told me to keep silent as we travel through here. According to him it should be void of ghosts, but we can never really know. Even if he's armed with the sword he died with, Jon can't fend off many spirits if a large number hide in the shadows here.

My feet echo faintly through the brick walls and only reaffirm the fact that I'm the only truly living being on this island. The heavy fog that permeates this place only makes me feel even more on edge as my eyes scan every nook and cranny for any of the faint blue glow that surrounds spirits on this island.

Jon's ghostly eyes follow the same paranoid path as mine as he guides me quickly through the abandoned and ancient streets.

Suddenly something loud crunches beneath my foot and echoes for far too long, seemingly throughout every single building in the village.

My breath hitches as Jon winces like he was struck by a boxer in the gut. Slowly we look down at the shattered remains of an ancient wine bottle, large chunks clinking as I slowly remove my boot from the impact area.

We give it a few seconds, hoping desperately that this place is abandoned even of ghosts.

Of course, I'm not so lucky. Slowly ghastly hands start reaching from the shadows, haughty and almost mummy looking spirits of ancient Greek spirits moan and groan as their pupil-less eyes gaze hungrily out at me.

Several hundred gaunter spirits emerge from the shadows and hold eye contact with me for a second before they lurch forward at speeds far greater then their thin bodies suggest they could. Their movements are jerky and spastic as the army of the dead moans and groans shrilly as I full on sprint as best I can with my injured leg.

"RUN! THE BEACH IS CLOSE, THEY WON'T CHASE PAST THE VILLAGE BORDERS!" Jon cries out hysterically as he follows close behind me, cutting down the weaker spirits with his spectral sword that try and attack me from behind.

I take the Siren claw I retrieved from the library and cut my way through the skinny spirits that cut us off, carefully avoiding being touched by one lest it possess me.

The head of screaming elderly ghost goes flying through the air as my claw rakes through the army, many abandoning the hunt for my flesh as they recognize the terrible claw that ended their lives millennia ago.

The fog begins parting in front of me, and I see the buildings part for open volcanic beach only a few hundred feet ahead of me.

Jon and I pool all the energy we can muster and pump our legs as hard as possible, propelling us past the horde of hungry and desperate spirits and practically throwing ourselves onto the hard-volcanic beach.

We quickly look behind us the mass of moaning and snarling ghosts reach out at us but seem to be held back by an invisible wall that prevents them from going passed the farthest building.

I breath a sigh of relief and satisfaction and start marching with Jon towards the massive jagged boulders that I now recognize as my landing sight. Large chunks of destroyed boat and other maritime artifacts confirming for sure that it's the hiding place of the Sirens.

Just before I reach the perimeter of the rocks I turn around to Jon, hoping to say my thanks and goodbyes to him before I depart the island for good, only for my eyes to widen as he lunges at me with narrow eyes and a snarl on his face.

His ghostly form enters my body and I'm thrown back unnaturally far and slammed into a heavy boulder. The wind is knocked from my lungs and I feel myself start convulsing, my own body fighting itself!

I focus back on the same willpower I used to expel the last spirit, and sure enough I manage to exercise Jon's spirit from myself.

His ghostly form glitches on the floor, but her rises to his full height eyes practically seeping with pure hate and jealously.

"J-on!" I choke out as my body aches in pain from being slammed so hard into the boulder, "Y-you promised! You swore on the Styx you'd never touch me!"

He chuckles madly between his heavy pants, "Maybe I did, but what of it! Styx means NOTHING out here, NOTHING to me! I've been trapped here for centuries without a body, without a sense of feeling for **anything!** I long for the touch of others, the sweet feeling of food in my mouth and the warmth of sun on my face! You're my ticket off this hell-hole! I won't let you selfishly leave me to rot while you live happily!"

"Jon you damn fool! My brother is a sorcerer, he could've made you a new body!"

"LIES! None possess such a power! I will have your body as mine! The sweet flesh of others shall grind beneath my teeth once more, I won't let you stop me!"

He launches at me with an insane roar, going to try and take control of me once more. In a flash I take the claw I was hiding behind my back and dodge as I rake it across his chest, glowing cuts appearing across his ghostly form.

Jon shrieks in pain and takes the ghostly sword and starts waving it around at me madly, any form and grace he knew in life being replaced as he shows his true and selfish colors.

I curse angrily to myself as I duel Jon with the Siren's claw. Dammit, I can't believe the fool played me! His plan all along was to possess me when I least expected it! I'm such a fool for believing he was a friend! All who die here are cursed to desire flesh, even him!

He hisses in pain as I claw along his forearm, there's no way in Hades I'm going to let this traitor win and turn my body into a cannibal!

I parry a strike from his sword and go for a counter attack, but his sword suddenly flurries out quickly and stabs me straight through my shoulder!

My arm involuntarily drops the claw as I cry out in pain, but he doesn't stop and rips the sword out and quickly stabs me in my thigh causing me to drop to my knee.

He kicks my legs out and I collapse onto the sand where he decides to stab me in my other shoulder. I hiss out in pain and try to force my arms to move, but the pain in my shoulders is too much so they just lay limply to my sides.

Jon grins wickedly as his ghostly figure looms over me, "I can't say I'm sorry for this, but I'm a selfish man. A body _and_ a way off this island is an opportunity I can't pass up! I've become smitten with you, _dear sister._ I'll take good care of your body, so don't worry. It'll be in good hands."

His spectral hand reaches into my back and I shriek as I feel his spirit attacking my nerves directly, triggering every pain nerve in my body simultaneously.

"I've got to soften you up first, and pain is just the _best_ way to do it! Oh don't give me that look, just give up and the pain will pass quicker!"

My vision starts going white from the sheer amount of _pain_ coursing through me, and the odd feeling on my skin surely signifies Jon is trying to subvert my control as he slips more and more of his spirit into me slowly.

I feel a shadow pass over me, and using the small amount of control I turn my head and look up at Jon's face as he grits his teeth in anger down at me.

My eyes squint as I realize that the boulder I smacked into seems like it's moving. Suddenly the rock seems to open up, revealing the glowing eyes of a Siren looking down at a new snack just beneath her clawed feet.

Jon's assault on me slowly halts as his eyes widen and he turns his head slowly, looking into the hateful red eyes of the Siren with the greatest amount of fear I've ever seen on a man's face before.

Her mouth opens up to reveal rows and rows of nasty teeth, the Siren seeming to smile down at the horrified ghost.

Quick like lightning her clawed fingers lash out and grab Jon, dragging the spirit up into the air where she wraps her wings around him, encasing him completely as the sick sounds of teeth biting followed by the horrified screams of Jon echo out from her wings.

Adrenaline suddenly courses through my body as the sick sounds of a Siren trying to eat a ghost ring through my ears.

I force my injured arm to reach into my pocket and take the vial of nectar from it. Tears threaten to spill from my eyes as the muscles in my shoulder scream as I bend my arm and place the vial to my lips.

Relief instantly washes over me as my wounds go numb, but I don't give myself the luxury to relax. That Siren is sure to realize soon that she can't actually eat the ghost!

I rise shakily to my knees and start fumbling towards my dingy waiting for me on the beach. A few Sirens try and lure me into their traps, but none dare approach as my drakon bone sword swipes the feathers off any that did approach.

My shoulders hiss at me in pain even with the nectar in my system as I push my raft towards the beach with some difficulty. The cool water splashes against my leg as my boat reaches the coastal water. I push it deep enough and throw my self over the edge with a pained groan.

The engine quickly starts up as more Sirens begin to approach from the beach, and I kick it into full speed and the boat lurches forward and starts racing through the water and away from the island.

I peek back at the island as it slowly begins getting smaller in my view and sigh in relief as thankfully none of the lazy Sirens try and fly after me or chase me down. The adrenaline in my system finally dies down and I lazily lean down in the seat and aim my boat towards _The Gauntlet_ that I spot now that I've cleared the fog.

* * *

It took me about an hour to reach Abigail's ship, and thankfully the pain in my shoulders passed away long ago as a few more sips of nectar work its magic at my injuries.

As I pull the dingy up to the rope launch on the ship, screams and general sounds of combat suddenly sound out from the deck up on the top deck.

My eyebrows scrunch as I hitch the rope to the boat and work the pulley system to manually lift myself up to the top level.

As I pull myself up high enough a screaming and half naked man screams, and I quickly duck as he goes flying over my head.

I stare incredulously at the man as he collides with the water and disappears beneath the waves. It takes a second for me to fully accept that the man was wearing Greek style armor to cover his chest, but literally had no undergarments at all.

No, I mean he was legit naked waist down. Genitals on full view in the front and bare ass clear for all to see in the back.

I turn around and look at the deck as dozens of waist naked men and women duel with the Nymphs on the boat with fierce and bloody intensity.

Slowly the Nymph's with Abigail, Percy and Bianca's help start driving the naked warriors off our ship. A lanky looking naked guy takes a revolver way to big for a man his size in his hands and aims towards one of the Nymphs.

He pulls the trigger before I can yell out for the Nymph to dodge, and the bullet misses the Nymph and actually nearly blows the head off of another naked warrior. What surprises me is that the recoil for the gun comically kicks up so hard it collides with his face with a sick _crunch._

His eyes roll back in his head as the gun falls from his hand and he collapses backwards dead.

The remaining naked pirates jump overboard as the Nymphs carve through their numbers with ferocity. Looking at them I see their legs merge together mid air and morph into a long fish tail. The surviving merpeople quickly speed off in the water and disappear down in the dark waters.

It takes me a few moments to fully accept the fact that the naked pirates attacking our boat were actually merpeople the entire time. I can't help but shudder at the memory of seeing that many… genitals in one area.

Percy pushes his way past the Nymphs and practically lifts me out of the boat with the bone crushing hug he wraps me in. I hiss angrily as he presses _right_ on the healing wounds in my shoulders, causing him to release me and stare at me with worried eyes.

It took a while to explain my whole journey on the Sirens island, the tales of the evil cannibal spirits serving as a good horror story to everyone as they listen to me. Percy especially shudders as he learns about the spirit's ability of possession, likely thanking that Gaea's eidolons never forced him or Jason to eat themselves.

Abigail herself was truly freaked out when I told her about what Mnemosyne told me about her heritage, and she especially became afraid when I presented the potion containing her memories to her.

She took them with shaking hands, but none the less decided that she wished to regain the memories she supposedly had lost years ago.

Her eyes widen with disbelief as she finishes the potion, Ornea, Bianca and I crowding around her as she stares up at the moon with frozen silver eyes.

"A-Abigail?! Are you okay, what's happening?!"

She blinks a few times and flinches lightly. Her fearful eyes close quickly, and open again once again. Any hint of fear in her gaze was instead replaced with a look of acceptance yet still containing a deep pain and sadness to them.

"I am… quite fine, thank you though. I need to… rest for now. I'm just a little… upset, you could say."

Suddenly her body shifts and morphs, turning back into Samson who stares incredulously into his hands. It takes us a minute to shake him out of his daze, but he comes to if a little shell-shocked.

We tried to get him to tell us about what's happening to Abigail, but he completely refuses in any capacity. He tells us it's not something any of them are comfortable sharing yet, but soon enough we'll know what Abigail's missing memories entail.

All of us decide to drop it for now and continue along with our quest, Polyphemus's island being only a few short hours away.

The sun is still high in the sky when Samson takes the gun the merman dropped and examines it with a strange glint in his eye.

"…Justice," He whispers quietly.

"What was that?"

"O-oh, it's nothing. Just this gun is a remarkable thing. Colt Python, a powerful revolver with some extremely wonderful enchantments on it. This is some good work here, a very useful tool if it wasn't cursed."

"It's cursed? That makes sense actually. I saw a merman use it, only to miss completely and for the gun to recoil so impossibly hard it smacked him in the face and crushed his skull."

"Huh, sounds about right. Hey Bianca! Catch!" My eyes widen as I watch him toss the gun to Bianca who looks down on it with glee.

"No!"

"What?"

"NO! Samson, it's a cursed gun and she's fucking _twelve!_ What the hell are you doing!"

He puts his hands up in the air to calm me down, "Just watch, the curse doesn't apply to her, I can sense it in the guns magical nature. Hey, Bianca!"

"Huh?" She says, spinning around with the almost comically large gun in her hands, however she tripped lightly on a loose floor board and accidentally squeezes the trigger.

A seagull next to me suddenly explodes in a shower of gore, covering me with most of it as Bianca covers her mouth in disbelief.

Samson watches me carefully as I remove what little bit of bird innards I can from my hair.

"Hey… you okay?"

It took the combined efforts of Percy and Ornea along with half the crew to prevent me from strangling my brother that day.

* * *

Polyphemus's island has… changed since Percy and I were there last. Almost all of the vegetation has rotted away, leaving sickly yellow grass everywhere while only a few patches had a vomit green coloring to them.

Massive sheep skulls and bones litter the once grand fields of the island, no birds chirp and not a single living organism makes its presence know.

Percy, Bianca, Samson and I drop down in the dingy and speed off to the dead island.

Percy and I discuss the state of the island as we pull onto the beach. Our best guess is that by removing the Golden Fleece the island turned into its natural state. A place of desolation where almost nothing can grow apparently.

We drop our anchor onto the beach and start marching up the path towards the dead tree that once help the fleece. We pass by piles and piles of huge sheep bones, Percy coming to the conclusion the flesh-eating sheep must've turned on one another when food ran out, before the last survivor eventually starved to death later.

Locating and Securing Ram for Samson was an affair that took less the five minutes to accomplish. The Corinthian style helmet was resting peacefully in the tree branches that simply grabbing was we needed to acquire it.

Without the sheep guarding this half of the island, the danger of this quest was reduced significantly. Samson's helmet shifts into and transforms magically into a tie-dye bandana with a big peace sign on the front.

He puts it on and sighs happily, the magic likely being a comfort for him. Oh, that reminds me!

I take Juggernaut off and hand it to Samson who gladly places back around himself. The immortal seems to relax even more as both magical artifacts cause a rush of euphoria to surge through their master.

Deciding not to waste anymore time, we quickly turn around and start hiking back to the beach. As we are doing so, the ground shakes as huge and heavy feet stomp into the ground behind us.

We spin around quickly and flash our weapons as Polyphemus's cloudy single eye glances at us from the top of the hill. He sniffs the air angrily and growls down at us.

"GRR, HEY! WHY YOU FOUL-BLOODS ON MY-"

The cyclops's rant is cut mid-sentence as his eye explodes in a puff of blood and eye juice. The body stands still on top of the hill, only twitching lightly as it slowly falls over and starts sliding down the hill, blood smearing a path down the entire way.

We watch as it slowly slides down to a halt and stops right in front of Bianca who holds the huge revolver in her hands. The body fades away into a pile of dust and she twirls around and grins proudly at our shocked faces.

"...Jesus Bianca, we didn't even fight him!"

"What? I thought we're supposed to kill them quickly?"

"Well I mean... you SHOULD, but where's the fun in that?"

Bianca pouts cutely at us, but we all laugh at the humor of the situation and take turns ruffling her hair and giving her praises.

Percy glances down at the hand cannon and gives it an appreciative look, "Now I know why Sam loved that thing so much!"

Wait… no that _can't_ be it! I thought they were destroyed years ago!

"Who's Sam?"

Before Percy can answer Samson's question, a new voice suddenly speaks our from behind us, "Alright pretty boy, keep those delicious lips shut!"

We spin around for the second time on this island and come face to face with a woman wearing a hoodie with the words 'Bad Bitch' written in bold red letters on the front.

Something about her seems familiar, her skin is pale, and her hair is a raven black. The contour of her face reminds me of someone I knew, but it's… hard to remember their name for some reason.

She removes her glasses and those familiar red eyes suddenly click something in my mind, and all the memories that were repressed in my mind come flooding back.

This is- she is…

"E-Eris?! Holy shit, it's been forever!"

I… how did I forget about Sam?! Samuel Strife, the godson of my brother! Eldest Demigod Son of Eris and well known blood thirsty psychopath! I don't… how could I just forget that I knew about Sam the entire time!

My eyes meet Eris's and she winks at me, "Sorry for messing with your mind Doll, it's better if the old man here doesn't know. It'll be much funnier later, trust me."

That… that bitch! She locked my fucking memories!

"Oh drop that angry grin, it's ugly. Besides, I was in the area after I felt my old gun being used and decided to check it out, and you wouldn't even _guess_ who I found giving it to Death Jr. right over there! My old buddy Samson, never thought I'd see the freak running around again. Guess Athena wasn't lying when she said the bastard turned himself immortal without the Olympian's permission. Zeus is still mad by the way, I'd keep your nose clear."

Samson groans into his hands and mutters a muffled 'Thanks Eris' to which she responds, 'Just doing Athena a favor'.

Eris puts her hands on her hips and looks out at Polyphemus's dying island, "Wow, now I'm getting déjà vu. Quick, someone call me a bitch!"

"You're a bitch!"

"BIANCA!"

She 'eeps' and cowers as I yell at her for swearing, the poor girl's already being corrupted and she's only been around Eris for less than a minute!

I give Bianca a stern look and walk over to Eris and spin her around so we can talk with _some_ privacy, "Eris! We have to tell Samson about Sam! He's the only family he's got!"

Eris scoffs, "Bitch, he got married! He's probably Banging his wife in Hawaii right this second! Actually, I need to check right quick and make sure he's doing it right."

"ERIS!"

"Ah! Jesus Doll, don't yell so loud, I'm _right_ here! Samuel has his family now, Samson doesn't need to know yet. Think of the humor and dramatic tension when they meet for the first time without any knowledge of the other!"

"…You're a bad mother _and_ a bad friend."

She pats my cheek lightly, "It's what I strive to be Doll. You know, you should drop the water brat over there and become my son's concubine, every king needs a court of women full of pregnant bellies."

"ERIS, STOP!"

"FUCK! God Doll stop yelling right in my ear! Do you have any idea how much money it takes for a goddess to pay for hearing damage?! Asclepius doesn't charge cheap!"

"ERIS!"

"Fiiiiiine! Here's a different tip Doll, have Percy bang ya' in a pool. Closest you'll get to fornicating with a god that way. If you really want to piss your ma' off do it in the ocean. Poseidon will totally tell her you did it in his domain."

I go to scream her name, but she lashes her hand out impossibly fast and covers my mouth, "Okay, enough yelling my name! I wasn't joking about Asclepius; his rates are insane!"

I glare at her as she takes her hand off my mouth, "I don't care about him, I care about my brother!"

"Then stop! Kid's got forever now that he's immortal, what's a few weeks to him now that he's basically a god? Besides, he's got to accept it that one day he'll outlive all you fleshies and continue on forever after that."

"And that's later, I care about here and now! His happiness is on the line! Don't you care about him? He's Samson's godfather!"

Eris glances her eyes at me through the side of her gaze, "No, I don't. What I care about is my boy. Athena and I are close, did you know? We gossip all the time! Did you know that his wife MORI PUT OUT THE HIT THAT KILLED MAXXIE?!"

Suddenly everything in the world suddenly seems to become quiet. Slowly I turn around with wide eyes, meeting Samson's shocked gaze as he stares at Eris, almost pleading with her desperately to tell him she's just playing a cruel prank.

He gets no such recession. Eris only locks eyes with Samson and nods once, confirming what she just said was true.

Samson's face becomes pained for a second before he closes his eyes and sighs deeply. He opens them again and his expression isn't quite so soft, he's clearly fighting back the pain and heartbreak from the revelation.

Silently he walks passed us and towards the boat, patting Eris lightly on the shoulder before going down and sitting despondently in the dingy.

I desperately want to call out to him, but no words escape my lips. There's just… nothing that I could say that would make it any better.

I turn to Eris and give her the most dangerous glare I can muster, words practically seeping venom, "That was a cruel way to tell him about Max!"

She just shrugs and idly picks at some grime under her nails, "He had to find out somehow. I don't do things gentle Doll, it's called tough love. Now get in that damn boat already, I'm sending all your assess back to camp as a favor for your mother. Oh, and Bianca? Feel free to use my gun, consider it thanks for your dad putting Max in Elysium for me."

Bianca nods once, if a little fearfully, and walks down towards the boat with Percy to go and comfort Samson.

I give Eris one last glare and storm away from her and sit down and comfort my brother as he cries his eyes out into my embrace.

Eris snaps her finger, and _The Gauntlet_ and our small little boat flicker out of existence in a torrent of red smoke and land in the ocean just outside of Camp Half Blood.

Samson's defeated march back into camp was one of the most awful feelings I've ever felt in my life. His powers seeping his emotions into any person in the immediate area, some campers even collapse into a bawling mess as my brother unconsciously projects his emotions.

Chiron and Mr. D stood awaiting us as Samson approached the Big House. Mr. D hands him Oculus and pats him roughly once on the shoulder before turning back inside with my brother and Chiron.

Our party was told to wait outside as Samson works with his equipment to reverse the curse afflicting Cabin Nine.

After an hour of tense waiting, the door opens and the bleary and dazed members of Cabin Nine shuffle out the door being escorted by a small army of Apollo campers.

I sigh in relief as the cursed campers regain their bearings and affirm every concerned camper that they're okay and themselves once again.

As happy as I am that my friends are okay, the implications of Samson's return to camp are something I fear greatly.

Eris herself mention Samson broke the law of the Olympians, that he's on Zeus's bad side. Combine that with the horrible depression my brother projected to every single camper here, and I'm just a hair worried my brother will soon fall into a self-destructive spiral.

As questers we succeeded our mission with flying colors, not a single life lost and no serious physical injuries despite the number of close calls.

As a sister and friend to my brother, I can't help but feel like I've failed thoroughly.

Just looking at my brother as he is now, he feels like a shadow of the man he was just yesterday. He has the aura of a broken man about him, not even the jeering insults of Dionysus can shake him from his emptiness.

I'm afraid that Samson will make himself fade like many gods have before. I don't know if he'll survive long at all anymore now.


	44. Chapter 44

**A/N: Welp, Samson's in for some rough times. Mori killed Max, Abigail is a daughter of Hyperion, and he's back at Camp well beyond the acceptable age. I wonder how Samson will react to everything that's changed at Camp in only the past couple years? JK lol, I know how. We're switching back to Samson's pov now, Annabeth had her time in the spotlight but the quests for his equipment are over. Big Bad Samson is taking the reigns from here on out.**

* * *

 _With Samson, Spring 2011_

Alright, I think a recap for my mental sanity should be in order right about now.

My name is Samson Akira, I was born a Demigod Son of Athena in the summer of 1949 to my father Katsuhiro Akira. In terms of Demigods, I'm what you'd consider a broken vow child. This meaning that I was born from my mother breaking her vow of maidenhood.

Mother explained it to me long ago that because I was born 'naturally', I'm closer linked with her then other Demigods, and this likely is the source of a few of my natural powers. Empathy, telekinesis and telepathic manipulation being among the list.

Throughout my teen years I created several immensely powerful artifacts with the help of my brothers whom all tragically passed away during the quests I undertook to create them.

Mother acted as my guide and sponsor during the course of events, her love for me being so great she broke many rules forbidding godly parents to interact with their children. Though this was easier as during that time minor gods were rioting and raging all across the world, drawing most of the other Olympians attention away.

Out of all the powerful pieces I have created over the years, three stand out as being what you could consider legendary.

The first created piece is a pair of gold framed and lensed Lennon Glasses. These glasses are named _Oculus_ , and they were created by using the divine essence of Prometheus's liver. These glasses have the power to see 'truth' in a metaphysical sense.

They can see past any illusion or falsity in others and reality. This means that wearing them you can even see past the divine light of a god's true form and stare directly into the heart of their domain itself.

You'd still die however, Mortal minds are driven to insanity as they can't comprehend divinity, and mortal bodies are completely destroyed when exposed to a god's divine light.

That's where the second and arguably most powerful piece of my equipment comes in place. _Juggernaut,_ the legendary track jacket, is an indestructible silver jacket granted to me in a previous quest by Artemis. Upgraded with a sacrificed Apple of Immortality, it possesses the most renown power of the trio.

Despite its natural ability of perfect temperature control for the wearer and the special magic flowers sewn into it by Rhea herself, _Juggernaut_ possesses the ability of complete curse immunity.

This means that a curse from something as lowly as a Satyr to as high as Zeus himself will be completely ineffective. _Juggernaut_ can magically keep the body of a mortal safe from even the true form of a god, and when paired with _Oculus_ allows one to survive as well as see into the heart of divinity.

This all means nothing however if the mortal using it doesn't have a mind powerful enough to comprehend divinity and not go bat shit insane. Something that no mortal mind can do.

This is where the final piece fits in with everything and ties the Divine Trio together. An old Corinthian helmet magically enforced with a cutting of the Golden Fleece, _Ram_ has the ability to allow a mortal mind to comprehend things as a god would.

This meaning that wearing this helmet would allow a mortal to see divinity and stay as sane as they were their entire lives. A side effect of wearing it is that it's heritage of being enchanted with the magic of the fleece allows the wearer to heal with the effectiveness of Apollo himself.

Among a few other powers I've added or done so accidentally when I was younger, this set combined allows a mortal to see divinity fully and return back to normal with no issues whatsoever.

Before my first death, I tested these artifacts out on my Mother at her behest, both of us wished to see if the fruits of my labor held any merits.

And they worked swimmingly, I gazed into the very spiritual essence of my mother's domain and survived the ordeal just like it was something anyone could do.

This however, came with a horrifying consequence. By gazing into divinity, I essentially absorbed some back into myself too, accidentally turning myself into an immortal being by leeching off of my mother's power.

Not a big deal most would think, but to the Olympian's this is a horrendous violation of one of their core laws.

Power flows down as a god creates an immortal, they have to sacrifice some of their own strength permanently to do so. This freaked the Olympians out greatly because my equipment allowed me to absorb excess energy from my mother and become immortal completely without their permission.

To them, I'm a godly energy stealing thief.

When mother pieced together the abilities of my gear, she killed my body and stuffed my essence inside of my magic amulet to spare me from Zeus's wrath.

My amulet and my equipment were then scattered about the Greek world in various and dangerous places, and for roughly forty-two years I was trapped within my own mind in some forgotten cave in Alaska.

I imagine I would've stayed there much longer were it not for the actions of my brainwashed wife. Moroiaca Galdr, Mori for short, freed me accidentally from my prison but lashed out in anger believing that I was a fake created to torment her.

During the fight, I learned she attained immortality by eating one of the Golden Apples I had stolen from the Hesperides.

My alternate form and previous life whom shares a body with me fought and defeated Mori, but she escaped regardless. Selene as her true name has been revealed to me by Mnemosyne's power is a daughter of Hyperion and a powerful one at that. However, that is not important at the moment.

The next few months after my release from the prison were such a shock that I almost considered turning myself into Zeus and get thrown in Tartarus _just_ so I could be in a place that makes more sense to me then the world I found myself in.

But alas, my work is yet to be completed. With the help of my sister Annabeth, her lover Perseus and two Children of Hades (though one ran away and hasn't been seen since before we recovered his older sister) we tracked down my missing gear and arrived back at Camp so that I could reverse a curse _Oculus_ placed on the Hephaestus campers.

Long story brought down to a close, I now find myself resting in Camp and fully aware of the fact that Dionysus has most assuredly told the Olympian council that I'm alive and running around again.

"It's gonna be good! Everyone up top will get their turn, each carving off a piece and throwing it into the pit personally. You should be proud, the last person we did that to was old Kronos himself."

Also, for the past half an hour Dionysus has been explaining to me in _painful_ detail all of the ways Zeus and the council will punish and torture me.

"Maybe drip poison on your face like they did to the Prometheus knockoff up north, make your wife handle the drip pan too!? We need more earthquakes anyways, so who cares if we're copying?"

"Mr. D! That's quite enough now, you're scaring the campers more then you are Samson!"

Chiron yells at Mr. D to behave and points out at the camp grounds. We all spin around from our seats at the pinochle table, and sure enough half of the passing campers are all sweating nervously and refusing to meet anyone's eyes.

"Bah, let them be scared! Good kids need fear nowadays anyways!"

Chiron scolds Mr. D, and we continue our card game as normal like Dionysus wasn't _just_ telling me he was going to turn me insane and have me eat my toes.

"So, brat? What's the plan with that insane wife of yours running around out there in Alaska?"

I glance up at him and give him a curious look, "I'm not sure what you mean? I have tons of plans, and most involve her anyways."

He rolls his eyes at me, "You're a husband are you not? That means you've got responsibilities, duties as a man. Even if you're in deep shit, there's things you have to do as a New God to prove you're something worthwhile. Who knows? If you even do a good enough job you might get to serve as assistant director or something. Hera knowing we need some godsdamn help around here…"

"Mr. D, need I remind you that if you put ten percent more effort into your job, we wouldn't be having near as many problems? I know the number exactly because Argus and I did the math, quite literally too."

"Stop bullying me!"

"Stop acting like a child!"

I tune out Chiron and Mr. D's argument and think back to what Mr. D just said. Assistant Director? If I do a good enough job, then maybe I might get off easy with the council?

Gods this is a fucked situation, because I still don't know what to do with Mori?! Before and after I somehow figure out how to save her!

Hmm, it's going to take some time and planning, but Mr. D _did_ give me a hint about her. According to him, she's out in Alaska. How he knows she's in 'the land beyond the gods' is ironically beyond me, but it's a start.

Hold up, did he say, 'new god'?

"Mr. D, what did you mean about 'new god'?"

"Huh? Oh, have you _really_ not realized by now? And here I thought kids of Ms. Smartypants were geniuses. Now isn't that disappointing."

Suddenly we all shiver, the air going so cold that we can actually see our own breaths. I hear Mr. D curse silently and swivel around in his chair and glare at the woman down by the steps.

She's wearing business casual clothes, and her hair is pulled into a neat knot. Her familiar grey eyes cause my heart to start pumping, giving me some small flashbacks to the last time I saw my mother's eyes.

"What do you want Owl face? As you can see I'm busy trying to keep this camp from burning to the ground."

Just as he says that the woman turns and looks as the Hephaestus catches fire, the flames bursting the windows open and dancing high into the sky.

She turns and raises a single eyebrow at Mr. D who just shrugs and takes a sip of his cola, "Now why do you have to go and break my heart like that Athena? I'm just one man, I _simply_ can't handle all these kids! Maybe you could convince father to end my prison sentence here…"

Mother rolls her eyes at Mr. D, "Not happening. Now excuse us for a moment, I require an audience with my son."

Mr. D gestures to her with his head rudely and I sigh and push myself out of my seat. Mother smiles softly at me and she turns around and leads me to a small campfire off to the side of the camp.

Huh, I never noticed that before. Was that put in recently? Also, who's the little girl poking the fire with a stick?

"Hello dear, may we have the hearth to ourselves?"

"Of course," The little girls nods and slowly vanishes into thin air, leaving completely bewildered about what the fuck is going on.

"Was… was that a ghost? I didn't know camp was haunted."

"Don't talk about your aunt like that," Mother chastises, "There's plenty of actual ghosts in camp. Now sit down, there's things we must discuss."

I roll my eyes like a preppy teenage girl and plop down on a rock by the hearth, the fire warming my bones and making my worries seem to just melt away. I probably would have fallen asleep if mother hadn't kept me awake with her words.

"Samson dear, do you hate me?"

Alright, that question just came out of left field and punched me straight across the face. I glance at mother from the corner of my eye, she stares neutrally into the flames, face so stony that I can't even make out the slightest hint of emotion to it.

"Of course I don't, mother, even with what you did to me I understand completely. You saved me, and I had to die for it to happen. I can't say… I'm okay, or everything is still fine between us, but I'm alive, here and now."

She's quiet for a moment, "…Excellent, then I've done everything that I ever could for you. Samson, I wish to… apologize, for all that I have brought upon you. I'm not the mother my children wish me to be, it is not in my nature to be so."

Mother turns to me, calculating grey eyes sparkling with the faintest hint of joy that only a Child of Athena could notice.

"You are strong, my son, the strongest child I've ever bared. I must count on you to prove yourself to the council, show them you're an ally and someone they can trust. I've spent many years trying to warm you up for your grandfather, that he might be willing to allow you your freedom should you prove yourself. So, I must ask, what will you do to show your worth to the Council of Olympus?"

Gods is that a hard question to answer. Zeus isn't an easy bitch to impress, especially when he doesn't like you. Hades, Percy's spent years fighting through wars and other horrible shit and the King of the Gods still doesn't like the poor lad.

What it comes down to in the end is what can I _possibly_ do then?

Well… there's only one thing I can think of…

"… I will defeat a rogue Titan, the very one that's been corrupting my wife's mind. Titan's are the oldest enemies of the gods, I'll show my loyalty by slaying one in combat. If Zeus is the fair King he prides himself as being, then he'll accept my quest as a peace offering and find it in himself to pardon Mori and myself."

She raises a curious eyebrow at me, her lips twitching into the ghost of a smile as she expects me to back up my hubris.

"Oh, you'll ask for Mori as well? That's asking much from the King, he may not be so willing to pardon her as she has worked with both of our enemies in the past before. Do you believe Zeus will be a forgiving god?"

I shake my head, "It doesn't matter, I'm her husband and I'll do whatever it takes to be by her side forever."

Mothers eyes twinkle for just a split second, and in that moment before she adopts her neutral mask I saw the faintest hint of pride. I smile lightly to myself, the knowledge of Mother being proud of me even after all these years lifting some of the weight off of my heart.

"Wonderful, you are a true and faithful husband. I must go now, I can feel father's anger even from here."

She quickly reaches an arm around my side and pulls me into a loving hug. I blush red, not expecting mother to hug me since it's only happened enough times I can count it on one hand. It takes me a second to shake myself from my surprise, but I reciprocate the hug and let the warm feeling in my belly soothe the pain I've been feeling in my heart.

"I love you, son and wish all the best for you. Go with grace and pride, and know that I will always be proud of you."

Mother places a loving kiss on my forehead, and my eyes widen in disbelief before she vanishes in a flash of silvery light. I feel my forehead lightly, eyes still wide as I try and process what just happened.

Did that… was that real? Did I just get genuine _affection_ from my mom? My mom, the goddess of wisdom universally heralded as a goddess of pure logic with no emotion?

Damn, mom really does care, doesn't she?

* * *

After my little heart to heart with Mom, I decided to spend some time and wander around camp, let the nostalgia of simpler times help me deal with my dark emotions.

I stopped by the archer range first, watching some of the younger Apollo campers shoot their arrows into targets about a hundred yards away. I smile fondly, thinking back to some of the campers I knew back in the day.

Though I do notice one younger looking camper is having a more difficult time. His siblings are scoring Robin Hood style hits in their targets, splitting the arrow in twain several times while the youngest is barely hitting the target at all.

I watch him for a second and immediately notice all of the flaws in his technique.

"Hold up," I yell out to him and he gasps and accidentally shoots his arrow high, knocking someone else's right out of the air.

"You're doing it all wrong. Here, hold the bow like this and have your legs spread apart here, make sure to keep your shoulders level. You'll feel a pinch in your back, don't try and move so it doesn't hurt. That muscle is important, it's what you use the most with archery. Every good bowman goes through this, it's the secret no one ever bothers to share."

I move him around and adjust his arms and back so he's in a proper shooting position. He looks at me with wide and unsure blue eyes, and I nod at him.

He smiles and aims down target, lining up his shot. He exhales softly, and his arrow goes sailing out across the field and hitting the bullseye so hard it pierces straight through the target and sails into the forest.

The boy cheers and looks at me like I'm the most amazing person in the world, when suddenly a high-pitched scream shrieks out from the forest.

A familiar Nymph pushes her way from the forest, the boys arrow lodged firmly in her shoulder.

"Holy… nefeli, is that _you?!_ "

Her angry eyes scan out over the archery field, all the campers frozen in fear from her harsh glare. She grits her teeth and yanks the arrow right out, completely ignoring the pain and blood gushing from her wound.

"WHO DID THIS?! SPEAK UP OR I'LL RIP ALL YOUR TEETH OUT!"

All of the campers immediately point towards the boy and I, both of us looking like deer in headlights as Nefeli locks eyes with us.

"Run!"

"GET BACK HERE SAMSON!"

"Aaaahhhh!"

* * *

Okay, so maybe I should avoid archery for the time being, I don't think Nefeli appreciated my assistance with the Apollo campers.

I decided to take a stroll passed all of the fancy new Cabins built for just about every single god I could name of from the Greek pantheon.

Though one cabin does catch my eye as I pass by. I stop by the front steps and look up. There, big and bold is the sign marking this as Cabin Six. The Cabin of my mother Athena… the cabin I once called home.

Is it still home, am I accepted here still?

I shake my head, of course I am! Why would it change, I'm still a Son of Athena after all?

It would be nice to see the old Cabin again, but I heard that Annabeth is down in the arena with the rest of my new age siblings.

A few minutes stroll down to the arena field, and sure enough the blonde heads of nearly a dozen and a half demigods with grey eyes mingle amongst themselves as Annabeth rattles off about sword technique theories and other such nerdy stuff.

I roll my eyes as Annabeth seems completely oblivious to the boredom of her siblings and decide that they may like an actual fight to watch instead of listening to someone talk about it.

"Okay, Annabeth," I call out and draw everyone's attention as I walk into the arena, "You might want to change the curriculum up, you're losing your students!"

"What," She questions, eyebrows scrunched as she looks on confused at all of her siblings. Her eyes widen as most of them yawn or blink and rub their eyes, dangerously close to falling asleep.

She blushes faintly, "Oh, sorry guys, guess I got a little carried away with my talking again!"

"Only 'a little' carried away?" Someone questions from the crowd, only to quickly flinch and look away as Annabeth glares harshly at them.

"Okay-okay, enough of that! Show of hands, who wants to practice what you learned today?"

Every single hand goes up. Annabeth blushes deeper and I come around to the front to stand beside Annabeth.

"Alright, guess we're excited today. Okay let's get this started, everyone pair up in groups of two. We've got the arena for an hour before Ares come through, so let's-"

"Actually,-" A girls voice cuts me off from in the crowd, "-could we see you fight instead? I've heard rumors you were the best swordsman when you went to camp, and I'm curious to see how you'd do against Annabeth. I mean, they say you learn the best from watching the best, so why not have _two_ instructors duel and we take notes?"

Fair point, and it sounds kind of fun too. I turn to Annabeth, "How about it then? Want to have a duel with me?"

She grins evilly at me, and I can't help but shudder.

"Why of course _brother!_ I still need to pay you back for letting Bianca explode a bird in my hair!"

I gulp, "S-sure thing. Okay everyone, back up! We need space for this to be a proper duel!"

The crowd gives us room and clampers up into the stone seats, giving Annabeth and I the entire space to duel.

My sister stretches her arms out threateningly, muscles stressing against her as she keeps her eyes firmly locked with mine.

Not backing down, I crack my neck and my back, loosening my self up for the challenge.

"Magic items or no?"

"Just swords, we'll work with magic at another time."

I nod and take _juggernaut_ off and hang it up on a rack off to the side. My cane extends into it's blade form and I spin it around fancily, getting a feel for it.

Annabeth does an even fancier and showy move with her Drakon sword, spinning it around and tossing it up in the air where she twirls around and catches it at the right moment so she's pointing it right at me.

I give her a blank look and she just smirks in response. I do a 'come hither' gesture, and she slowly starts advancing on me, holding her sword level with her shoulders and keeping it pointed at me.

My cane-sword comes around behind my head and rests level with my shoulders, keeping it in a perfect Woman's Guard position.

Annabeth and I circle around each other like sharks, both of our eyes examining each other's forms and sword positions.

She scrunches her eyebrows as I hold my sword in a form she's unfamiliar with. I'm not surprised, her sword is short and made for fighting like a Greek or a Roman where mine is much longer and made for more modern European longsword forms.

Her sword flies out and goes to chop my leg, but I deftly bring my foot back and avoid her swipe. She does it a few more times, testing the waters and seeing if I'll react with a counterstrike.

I don't fall for her bait and keep my sword level in the position, letting her stay completely unaware to what I potentially might do with my sword.

Deciding that she's had enough waiting, she lashes out like lightning with a stab that could probably go through a brick wall.

I was watching her muscles in her arm very carefully before she strikes, and I notice a very slight twitch in her trapezius muscle.

My sword comes flying around my side with great speed and power, forcing Annabeth to change the momentum of her sword to reflect mine away from herself.

She winces as our swords clash and uses her entire body weight to force my sword away. We back pedal away, and I bring my sword to the Middle Guard position.

Annabeth slides along the gravel and stops, leveling her sword to her stomach and examining me with a sharp glint to her eye. I feel her trace over my body again, reevaluating me completely now that she has a taste of what I can do with a long sword.

We circle around again, and I see her muscle twitch slightly. I bring my sword around on instinct, but I hit nothing as she jukes me out, pretending to slash only to bring her sword back as mine slashes through the air!

She grins and uses the opportunity to stab at my chest. I grit my teeth and pour my strength into my arms, using the momentum to bring my sword all the way around and bash her stab away.

Her sword flurries out, going to chop me on either side of my body alternating as I block each strike with my sword. Most short swords have the advantage when they're on the attack, so I break her technique with a hard parry that forces her arm out.

Now's my chance! My sword comes around horizontally with a mighty swing, Annabeth ducking beneath the strike and retreating backwards. I continue my fast and heavy strikes against her as she ducks and parries best she can, my immortal stamina allowing me to maneuver my cane around deceptively fast.

I leave a small opening in my strikes, a trap for her if she's willing to take the bite.

Hook, line and sinker! She throws her arm out to try and stab my side, and I use a dirty trick I learned from Joseph to pinch the blade between my arm and my side!

My cane goes out to jab at Annabeth, but she lives up to her reputation as a skilled warrior and lashes her leg out and kicks me in the gut hard enough that I'm forced to slide back several feet.

Her kick slides her sword out too and I feel it cut my skin slightly, a tiny amount of golden blood leaking from a very tiny cut on my ribs.

The crowd coos and gasps as they notice my blood, my siblings fully realizing the rumors of my immortality are true.

Annabeth faces off against me again, breathing hard as she grins at me excitedly. I can't help but smile and get myself in a ready position again.

Let's do this!

She's back on my ass again like an animal, her sword probing my defenses as I parry around every hit, slowly getting a map together of how she thinks during the fight.

I map out her body language as she fights, scanning for the little nuances and twitches her body makes before a strike. We continue with fierce and heavy combat, both of us fighting with a strength, grace and brutality even Ares would appreciate.

Annabeth truly lives up to her legend as being one of the Seven, likely the most skilled warrior out of the bunch if her tactical way of dueling is anything to go off.

But this match was decided from the start, I didn't earn the title as best dueler in my generation for no reason!

She goes for another strike, and I quickly deflect it and bring the flat edge of my cane around her exposed side and slam her ribs _hard,_ forcing her lung to expel it's air and force Annabeth to gap and wheeze as only half her lungs hold oxygen.

With her weakened state is was a simple disarming strike to knock the sword right from her hand, the blade spinning in the air and lodging itself into the stone bleachers.

The arena is quiet, the comical looking faces of my siblings completely shocked by the epic duel followed by the surprising defeat of their favorite sister.

Annabeth chokes a bit more, and I pat her on the shoulder as her lung starts inhaling in sync again with her other one. She gives me a bloody grin and slaps me roughly on the back.

"D-*COUGH*-Damn Samson! You never told me you were that good! Rest in Peace to the man, I think you're just as good as my old friend Luke! Gods you hit like a truck, I think you should sign up for the Colosseum if you have the time!"

"The… Colosseum," I say, raising an eyebrow at her, "Don't people like DIE in the Colosseum?"

"Not any now. Camp Jupiter built a new Colosseum for challengers to fight in. No one dies, and it's an excellent place for warriors from both camps to test their strength. You should give it a try! You might get some supporters or even fans if you're good enough."

Annabeth tells me some more about the Colosseum and I have to admit, I'm pretty damn interested.

Fuck it, why not?!

To Hades with it! I need a distraction, and this is more then entertaining! Watch out Camp Jupiter, Samson Akira is signing up for the Colosseum!


	45. Chapter 45

**A/N: Welcome back folks, we're officially bringing Samson into Camp Jupiter now! Even more is that he's signing up for their brand-new Colosseum! Some of you may be asking 'why', and that's more then fair. While part of it is stress relief and to distract himself from his morose thoughts, another aspect is that he's trying to prove himself to Olympus by winning the matches and becoming beloved by Camp Jupiter as a champion. Athena** _ **and**_ **Dionysus told him he's gotta prove himself, and what better way then fighting for glory in the Arena?**

 **00**

* * *

 _With Samson, spring 2011_

After Annabeth told me about the fancy new Colosseum the Roman Demigods had just finished building, I almost immediately started getting ready for the couple days drive to San Francisco and Camp Jupiter out there.

I haven't really met many Romans before, though I did have a run in with that Son of Janus forever ago. Blake, I think his name was?

Even though the drive there will kind of suck ass, I'm pretty excited to see what this other camp is like. I can't say I'll be super happy being there considering there was a war like less than a year ago.

Some crazy prophet guy pulling a Caesar on everyone or something insane like that. You've got to love militaristic states like that, get one guy with enough charisma behind him and suddenly you have a Mussolini.

Oh whatever, the past is in the past.

It was very disheartening to learn that my old fire breathing horse, ironically named 'Horse', hasn't been seen in camp for a good long while. Wherever the old pony is I hope he's okay, we won't admit it to one another but we're pretty bonded.

Though I'm sure a good bit of that bond is that I can understand Horses like Percy because of a shitty Satyr's curse that basically ended up as a blessing instead.

Gods am I glad I only understand horses and not animals in general, that would be fairly annoying in all honesty.

I decide to take a stop by the stables, it's pretty nostalgic since they're one of the few buildings in camp still that looks just like it did when I went to camp here forty years ago.

A hollow feeling starts creeping into my chest, like my heart is gone or something.

So, this is it, huh? The 'reward' of immortality? Being old enough to see everything you cared about change and become so uncanny you can barely recognize it anymore?

I huff morosely and kick a pebble with my foot. Immortality, so far all it's ever been for me is nothing but a curse.

All of my old friends are gone now, relaxing for eternity in Elysium. Everything I knew is changed, so much of the world is different and it's honestly overwhelming.

Hades, when I first came to after my imprisonment I had a horrible panic attack. Seeing the new world, one I can barely understand, it's just so...SO!

I sigh and run my hand through my hair. Enough thinking like that, I still have a mission! Mori's in danger of corruption from an unknown Titan, and if I want to save her ass from punishment I need to do enough to earn a pardon for myself and Mori!

Abig-sorry, _Selene_ talked with me in my dreams last night, she told me that I need to have faith in myself and essentially just to toughen up through it.

As much as it hurts right now, I _have_ to focus on things other then myself as well. Even though I can't see much of mother yet, here visit earlier did affirm that I at least have a _chance_ to prove I'm worth it to Zeus!

There comes a time for rest, but I'm not there yet. I have to earn the right to an eternity of peace with my wife and mother, and it won't be a simple task to get that right.

A strange feeling quickly crosses across my skin, goosebumps roll down my arms and an… unsettling aura puts pressure in the air.

Dark shadows loom over me and I spin around and come face to face with the being that terrified me the most when I was young.

Standing high over me by several feet is a body of pitch black, like a void. It's mane is as crisp and golden as the finest gold on Olympus, but those eyes… they're like looking into the heart of a _volcano._

I recognize this horse! It's the same one my friends fought at the Lamia's mansion years ago!

" **Well I'll be, never thought I'd see yer' face round these parts again. Guess those rumors Eris been spreadin' were true. How've ya' been ya' sunovabitch?"**

"W-what the Hades? _How_ are you here?! _Who_ let you in here?!"

" **Got permission while back, folks here gave me a nice stable, fresh hay every day. Listen partner, just wanted to say muh' sorry's, last we met I was pretty angry and took it out on yer' friends. We don't got to be pals or nothin', but we can be men and apologize."**

I keep a warry eye on the demon horse, trying my best to… read facial expressions… on a horse. Okay, I _really_ need a break now!

"Well… I guess accepting apologies is about all I can do now. Thank you, I guess? You wouldn't happen to have known what happened to my horse would you? He's not around Camp so I figured you might've seen him around somewhere?"

" **Yer old stallion? Aint' seen him since last I saw you. If the old boy isn't here, then he's probably up in that other Camp. I best be going now, friends set me up on a date with a nice Pegasus and I'd like to get the hotdog all warmed up if you catch muh' drift?"**

The huge horse winks at me and it takes all of my willpower not to throw up right then and there.

"Right… good luck I guess and try not to break spine her man!"

The horse snorts and starts trotting away towards the stables. Deciding not to watch horses fuck I wisely make my way towards the Big House, I need Argus to drop me off at the train station so I can get my van from my dock in Boston.

Before I get too far, the horse calls out to me.

" **Fore I forget, names Rival now, mah' handler gave it to me. Eris is expectin' Ya'll to meet soon, so don't take too long on yer business now ya' hear?! I don't tolerate none disrespecting mah' mama!"**

I wave Rival off and continue my trek to the Big House. Taking the time, I start pondering about Eris's involvement in everything so far.

Obviously she's been a part of my life ever since she showed herself to Max and I when we went looking for his mom.

From that point on we've talked and almost bonded really, her offering me sage advice in the form of insults with hidden meanings being a clue she gives a shit at the very least. Hades, she even saved my ass when I was first in the Sea of Monsters!

Then she does it again when I was with Annabeth, only now she dropped the hint of Mori's… Involvement in Max's death. But this still leaves me fairly confused.

Eris is expecting something from me, Annabeth hinted at it and now Rival has confirmed it. She wants me to meet someone once I'm finished with things, but who the Hades could they be? Max's kid died in when he did so it's not them.

I just don't know, but whomever they are must be important enough for Eris to go through all this trouble for me to learn about it myself.

Whomever they may be, I hope for my sanity they're not insane like Eris!

* * *

After recovering my Van and making the trip from East to West coasts, I spent an hour or so searching for the service tunnels located around the main Caldecott tunnel. Of course, the actual tunnel leading to Camp Jupiter wasn't marked on the blueprints, so I was forced to look for one that by definition shouldn't exist.

I did eventually find it, using my scrying magic to locate a place radiating magic and following the trail to an old looking service tunnel. The symbol carved into the top of the entrance way was a big give away to its true purpose.

Thankfully the tunnel seems to have been expanded, allowing me to drive my van through with no problems.

After driving through the poorly lit tunnel for a while I notice a bright light, signaling the entrance proper to Camp Jupiter. I twist my hands nervously around the steering wheel, I've heard stories about the Legion and I can't help but be a little nervous.

These guys sound hardcore, and that's saying something since the people in Camp Half Blood haven't chilled out at all since the time my brother accidentally started a civil war!

I drive through the light, being blinded for a second, and gaze out in amazement as the tunnel opens up to a beautiful landscape. Fields of fiore stretch out across the land, buildings clearly Roman in architecture stand elegant and strong off in the distance, a mighty river separates the tunnel from the main city but an ornate bridge crosses it, allowing simple access.

That must be new, last I heard you had to cross the river at other points.

I swear I hear something yelling at me as I drive along the path to the city I see, but I ignore it and continue on my way.

A few minutes later I end up in front of a small sign saying 'park here' with an arrow pointing off to the side just before the main town. It looks super rickety, like someone took an old board and practically spray-painted words onto it.

Guess even the Romans can't figure out how to manage parking lots either huh?

I turn down the path and follow a bumps gravel road to an area marked with those temporary parking ropes you see at shitty carnivals. I squint my eyes and mouth a silent 'what the fuck?' as I see a statue bust of a torso and head wiggling around animatedly.

It takes all my willpower not to laugh like an idiot as I watch the living statue spaz out on his little podium. I roll my van to a stop by the bust and roll my window down, the little statue glaring harshly at me as I gaze at him neutrally.

"…"

"…"

"..!"

"..?"

"So… how's it going in?"

"So? SO!? That's all you have to say for yourself?!"

"Um, was there a password or something?"

The head starts shaking in rage, blood vessels even popping up from the… skin, I guess?

"Nothing as petty as a 'password'-" The head mocks, "-there are rules! Regulation, order! You've broken almost all of them Graecus! All who enter the public territories the Legion must pass inspection by Terminus!"

"Oh. Sorry dude, I just figured as a human we have like… _the right_ to go wherever without the Man keeping us down."

The head squints at me in suspicion, "…When were you born?"

"In nineteen forty-nine."

"Oh for Jupiter's sake, you're a damn hippie!"

Now it's my turn to squint at him, "That's right, I am. There some kind of problem here, Narc?"

The head blanches at me indignantly, "Of _course_ there's a problem! Last time we let a hippie in they got the whole Legion high for three weeks! The Praetor then banned recreational drugs and it has stayed that way since. Good riddance I say, the Legion doesn't need stoners tarnishing it's good name!"

I roll my eyes, of course Rome has to be a bummer like that. Frickin totalitarian a-holes trying to keep the people down!

"Whatever. Look dude-"

"TERMINUS!"

"-Terminator, I'm here for the Arena, I heard it was open to any contender and I'm trying my hand at it. Can I park here? Or do I have to throw a towel over you and do it anyways?"

Terminus tilts his head to the side and looks away in thought for a minute or so.

"Hmm, Reyna did say to let contestants in. Fine, park your stupid Hippie van over there. And keep your nose clean outsider! I've got my eyes on you!"

He tilts his head at me like he's doing a hand gesture, only his bust has no arms at all so it's really just a head and torso glaring at me like he could actually do more than fall over at me.

I park my van next to a huge silver chariot and gather up the supplies I need for the arena. According to Terminus all visiting contenders for the Colosseum must speak with one of the Camp Praetor's first. Something about ensuring liability and whatnot.

* * *

My next stop from 'New Rome' was to Camp Jupiter itself. Legionaries pointed me towards a building called the 'Principia' where I should be able to find the Praetors and get permission to enter the arena.

I took the time during my stroll to admire the works and engineering of the Romans. Aside from their numbers and standardized equipment, the Romans have spent a great amount of time on their infrastructure.

Immaculate roads, well thought out building placements, impressive dedication from workers and guardsmen, it's all very organized.

Half of me greatly admires their dedication and discipline, but my other half despises the lack of creativity and personality. This whole place is clearly a military base, a fancy boot camp essentially.

Combine that with the fairly shitty attitudes of most people here and I'm more then happy to remain a Greek rather than a Roman.

I eventually arrive at the Principia and whistle appreciatively at the subtle beauty of the building. It looks like an ancient world bank with glorious white walls and columns. A guard lets me inside when I tell him I'm a contender for the arena and I quickly shuffle in.

A tingling feeling gnaws at my senses and I focus on it, following it towards the back of the room. A solid gold eagle standard stands proudly on display, raw godly energy practically leaking off of it with no sense of subtly at all.

Given the fact it's Roman in origin, this makes complete sense.

"Beautiful, isn't it? Don't get closer though, I'd rather avoid punishing someone for touching the standard."

I spin around as a woman walks towards me. She's donned in fancy Roman-ish attire. An ornate cape is slung over her shoulders, leather armor covers her chest with bare hints to the standard purple shirt people here wear. Her skin is a tanned browned, my guess placing her from Puerto Rican descent, and her hair and eyes are the same black color.

Despite her otherwise neutral expression, I can tell from her eyes alone she's intelligent and crafty, a true and true leader if I've ever seen one. Gods is she perfect to be leader of the Romans.

"My apologies miss…"

"Reyna, but I am to be referred to as Praetor, even by visitors."

"Of Course, Praetor, I was just admiring the standard here. Whomever crafted it has a lot of power, the magic in it is practically like a beacon in the dark."

Reyna tilts her head to the side, eyes analyzing me even more so then before.

"You can _sense_ it you say? Interesting. Anyways, tell me why you're here, my guards don't let people in for light reasons."

"Right, I'm here actually because I would like to fight in the arena. Terminus mentioned that I need a Praetor's permission first."

She sighs and pinches the bridge of her nose, "Foolish god, I told him to stop sending them to me! Frank is more than able to handle applicants as well! Fine, if you want to enter the arena then I need you to show me you're worth it. My Colosseum has a standard, only exceptional fighters allowed. What's your call to fame? _Why_ should I spend the resources housing you?!"

Well, there's several dozen reasons and examples why I'd say, but I suppose Reyna isn't wanting to listen to me rattle off my tales of valor and crap like that. I do however have a title granted to me by Mother years ago, I wonder if that's enough to earn the right?

"I guess the easiest thing to say would be my title. I don't know if word has ever reached you guys, but I'm known as _The Mystic_ to some. It's about all the honor I have I guess."

Her eyes widen just ever so slightly. Huh, guess that title isn't just something Mother gave me lightly?

"The Mystic, you?!" I nod, "That's not a light claim. Prove it then, I want to know if you're truly the legendary enchanter!"

Legendary enchanter? That's pretty damn cool actually! Now how would I prove to her I'm not lying?

I look down to her hip and notice that her dagger is familiar. I ask to see it and she narrows her eyes at me and refuses to even remove it from her sheathe, instead keeping a firm grip on it, ready to cut my throat open at a moment's notice it seems.

"Fine, then look at the pommel. You'll see _'SA'_ engraved there, those are my initials. 'SA', Samson Akira otherwise known as The Mystic."

The dagger comes out and she examines the pommel. Reyna looks around behind me at two automaton dogs that are laying down and mimicking panting. I raise an eyebrow at them as they lock eyes with me for a second before laying their heads down and pretending to fall asleep.

Reyna exhales silently in relief, an act which would go unnoticed to most people. Interesting, perhaps she has trust issues?

"So you are who you say you are then. That's extraordinary considering the fact that you should be an old man by now. How have you kept yourself young then, some kind of sorcery?"

"Something like that, It was mostly an accident but I am immortal now. I'm surprised you know about me considering that I'm not a legendary hero like Annabeth or Percy. I make stuff sometimes, that's about it."

Reyna gives me a curious once-over, "Don't humble yourself, _The Mystic_ is well known to all who have power. I've seen your works in action, felt the pain of their attacks personally. Whether you know it or not, some of the most powerful magic weapons I've seen used come from you. Having you here is an honor, and even opens up a wonderful opportunity!"

A strange glint shines in her eyes and I give her a questioning look, "An opportunity? I'm sorry to burst your bubble but I'm not signing up for the Legion. I'm an artist, not a soldier."

"Pity, but that's not what I meant. Even though Greeks and Romans are 'united' a clear tension still exists in my Camp. Too many Romans still consider your kind weak, but I know how to fix that. You participate in the Colosseum, do well enough to challenge and beat the current Champion, and my subordinates may start seeing Greeks as being more then just weak. Romans accept those who are strong, show them that and our Camps will become closer than ever before."

I sigh despondently and rub my temple, gods I literally can't catch a break anywhere can I?! Oh well, this opportunity works well for both of us, if I can help unite the Camps even closer then this might go a long way in proving myself and earning two pardons from Zeus!

"Very well then, I accept. Just don't bug me a whole lot with propaganda, I'm not turning myself over to the authorities!"

She reels back lightly and gives me a stern look, clearly not liking that I'm defiant. Too bad for her, I know how Roman work. They offer you a hand and before you know it you're swept up under their thumb, completely subordinate without even knowing it.

Sorry sister but I'm a free spirit! Down with the oppressors!

"The Legion is not near as bad as it seems. Many find happiness here, even families."

"At the cost of creativity and personality. This is a dictatorship and these people are so thoroughly brainwashed they can't even see it. I applaud your skill, but this society is nigh evil. Rome fell for a reason, people all around the world want democracy for a reason."

"We're not like others," She half yells, "We fight to live! Order through discipline, it's the way of the strong!"

"Strong, in what ways? You fight good, you build good, that's about it. Call it whatever fancy words you like, a dictator is still a dictator."

Reyna inhales sharply and pinches her nose again as she exhales slowly, "I don't say this often, but I think I made a mistake. I can't believe we spent years looking for _T_ _he Mystic_ , only for him to come right to us and disrespect me!"

"Of course I'll disrespect you! Down with the authority! No oppressors!"

"Oh my gods shut up! I'm not a tyrant!"

"Every Tyrant says that! Ever heard of Caesar? Niro? Or even just any Roman leader ever?! Tyrants all of them!"

She looks like she wants to rip my head off, but quickly calms herself down from thunderous rage and adopts her assured and stoic persona again.

"Whatever. Look, just win that stupid tournament and we'll all be happy. If you win, then I'll owe you a favor. Deal?"

Reyna extends her hand out to me, eyes watching carefully as she regards me. I think over it for a second but decide this is one of the best things I can do to earn favor with Olympus.

I take her hand and we shake, Greek and Roman together to bring our people closer.

"Good, now that that's settled I want you to meet with my Legate. He's mentioned you before and I think you'll be pleased to meet once again."

"Praetor, sorry to interrupt but that one girl-" A new voice suddenly enters the building but stops mid-sentence as their mismatched eyes make contact with me. My mouth curves into a smile as they point a confused finger at me.

"Y-you! Why are you here?! Reyna we can't let this guy be here! He'll destroy us all!"

Reyna turns to me and raises a curious eyebrow. I just give her a cheeky grin that says, 'ask him later'. The person of course being Blake Jefferson, the only living Child of Janus and supreme commander of the Legion if my limited knowledge of Roman ranks is correct.

Some months before Gaea's defeat I accidentally ran into him when we both happened to be scouting out a building run by monsters. Through sheer coincidence and accident alongside some shenanigans we both got caught and had to fight our way out. Blake still hasn't gotten over the fact I 'ruined' his mission it seems.

"That's an inappropriate way to speak of our associate Blake. He's helping us with our Greek problem after all."

Blakes mouth opens and closes like a fish, "Reyna you can't! We won't survive him! I-we-no please!"

"Blake," Reyna snaps, shutting his stuttering up, "…Bring him to the Colosseum. Now. That's an order Legate, now get to it!"

Blake's face is stoic and neutral, but I can tell he's half a second away from snapping and shoving his spear up my ass.

We leave the Principia and march silently back towards New Rome and the Colosseum there. I take the moment of silence between us to take in his brand-new appearance.

His hair is covered by a fancy officer's helmet, so I can't tell how it's styled. His outfit is also fancy like a real Roman commander's, lots of intricate designs and colors. Blake's also sporting a cool looking cape as well, the Roman laurels in brilliant display in the center.

A small golden dagger is at his hip, and his fancy spear is currently in it's ring form right on his finger. Otherwise he looks unarmed, but I know for a fact even lightly armed he's a dangerous foe.

"So Blake… how's it been?"

He glances at me from the corner of his eye quickly but doesn't respond and continues marching.

"Sorry about that mission of yours all those months ago, didn't mean to blow your cover."

No response.

"To be fair, I didn't expect you in that vent. You can't blame me for it collapsing right into that group of monsters!"

He sighs morosely, whispering under his breath, "Gods I hate you so much."

I snort at his silent insult and continue our little quiet walk. Eventually we end up at the front office of the Colosseum, Blake talking with the lady running the counter and apparently setting up my forms as an honorary gladiator.

He shoves the papers at me and has me sign a bunch of forms.

"Here are your forms yada-yada, we aren't liable for insurance or otherwise any permanent injuries. If you happen to expire from life, then your next of kin will receive your earned prize money as well as a lovely written letter. We would like to reaffirm permanent injuries are not our responsibility and we offer no form of health insurance and any stitches or complementary first aid must be paid back in full within a four-month period. Yada-yada just don't die you idiot, Reyna has a lot riding on your victory!"

"Please, I've got this! This isn't my first time dueling with people before, it'll be no big deal."

"Arrogant little, it's not just any little thing! This isn't some small competition, you'll be going against some of the most skilled warriors in the Legion and Beyond! These warriors have been fighting for years, some for longer then we've been alive. If you're as legendary as Reyna believes then you'll take this as serious as possible. People die in the Colosseum, they aren't supposed to but that means nothing to your opponents. They will try to kill you!"

Blake gives me his final warning before stomping off back towards camp, taking my papers so someone can no doubt file them or some stupid thing like that.

I shrug at his vexed attitude and turn around and follow the handler into the bowels of the Arena. Immediately the scent of bloody crosses my nose as the moans and wails of men and women in agony echo from deep within the halls.

Damn, what a welcome!

The woman leaves me in the barracks and closes the heavy door behind her. I plop myself on a bunk in a dark corner and gaze out at the armored fighters that mull and train about the large room.

Men and women donned in heavy armor like Arthurian knights swing huge clubs and bastard swords at fake dummies and imaginary enemies, other more lightly armored fighters flurry out their light weapons with speed like a bullet.

I wipe a small bead of sweat from my brow as I look at my competition. Blake was right, these are top tier fighters! Hades, that one girl with the spikey black hair in the back with the spear is so quick she looks like the damn Flash!

No, enough of those thoughts! I'm here to win and no one can stop me!

I rise from my chosen bunk and start pumping myself up, I've got this! The floor seems to shake lightly as a large myrmidon lumbers towards me, his exposed skin covered in dozens of nasty and jagged scars. His voice is so deep as it bellows out I swear he's somehow shaking my bones with just his voice!

"HA HA! NEW MEAT HUH? WELCOME TO THE ARENA WHELP! DON'T LET THE UGLY MUGS OF THE PEOPLE HERE SCARE YA', WE'RE JUST ONE BIG FAMILY! COME ON LITTLE GUY, LET'S GO MEET YOUR NEW BROTHERS AND SISTERS!"

The man doesn't even give me the chance to respond before he grabs my arm and starts dragging me towards a group of chatting fighters. Even though this guy is legitimately the most intimidating man I've ever seen he's really just a seven-foot teddy bear.

I don't think I've met a nicer guy then this, and I know Max Strife!

The Myrmidon practically drops me into the table the warriors are around, and I'm surprised by just how _jovial_ they all are! Chatting and recounting tales with this group makes me feel like I have a family again. It feels… it feels like my brothers are here with me again.

My smile is bittersweet as I let myself sink into my feelings, maybe… maybe I _can_ do this after all?


	46. Chapter 46

**A/N: And now the tournament kicks off! Samson's making some new friends, and Reyna is plotting. Also hope you guys recognized Blake from last chapter, he comes from my friend's story 'The Dealer's Choice'. Go and check them out, Ryano12345 is their page!**

* * *

I can hear the roar of the crowd even beneath the several dozens of feet of stone, the floor shakes as they stomp their feet and my ears ring from their combined shouts for blood and glory. My time is coming soon, but for now I wait on my platform, waiting nervously for it to rise and bring me up to the initiation match.

A steel bar door clinks and lowers behind me, locking me in the tiny room and alerting me that I have only a minute and a half until the platform rises.

The ground shakes from huge lumbering footsteps as the Myrmidon, a dark eyed man simply named Troy, approaches and casually leans on the bars to my cage.

"Nervous? Shouldn't be, you're probably one of the best fighters in all of New Rome if those stories of yours are anything to go on. Relax kid, you'll be fine. Besides, you're probably going up against Probatio, low ranking foot soldiers looking for glory. They're young and barely experienced, you can take them all on just by yourself guessing on your skill level."

"Wait, _all of them?_ Is there more then one fighter or something?"

Troy nods, "Got that right, there'll be six up there. It's a free for all so you won't be doing all the work. This is an initiation right, last man standing joins the ranks permanently. Make it through this and you're one step closer to facing off against the champion!"

I exhale comically, six foot soldiers isn't too bad I suppose. I'm thankful the starting match is a free for all, makes it that much easier to rank up and become an official gladiator. Troy mentioned a Champion, I wonder who they are?

"You mentioned a champion, what can you tell me about them? Just something to pass the time."

Troy's eyes get a dangerous glint to them, the kind of shine men get when they're the most determined they've ever been in their lives.

"Aye, that's a man named Lanius. Legends say he was a legate before our current one and was disgraced by some failure. The Praetor before Reyna decreed he may stay here if he proves himself in the arena. Well, he sure as Pluto did! Rose through the ranks to become the Grand Champion in under a week, slew the previous Grand Champion and has held the title for decades to some. We never see the bastard, he holds himself up in a secluded room somewhere and only comes out for matches. Problem is those are few and far between. Grand Champion titleship matches are to the death, only one gets to walk away."

"I'm sensing a _but_ here… Troy, you aren't going to challenge that man are you?"

"You bet your arse I am! I've been training since I was a boy, I told my da I'd bring honor back to our name and becoming Champion is the way to it! I'm almost ready but a few weeks is enough time to prepare myself. I've got a legacy to uphold, Lanius will be defeated by me and that's a promise!"

My feet wobble as the platform groans and suddenly begins to slowly rise. Troy grins widely at me and knocks on the bars with his big fist.

"Knock em' dead kid! And remember, don't hold anything back! Victory is won by those who give it their all!"

I give him a grateful smile as he disappears from my view, a frown quickly replacing my joy. Oh gods, titleship matches are to the death! That means… if Troy beats Lanius before I do… I'll have to kill him.

"Aaagh!" I scream madly into my hands, my emotions becoming frantic from just how fucked this whole situation is!

I sigh softly and remove my hands from my face. Whatever happens, I'll deal with it then. Right now I have a more important task at hand, securing my place firmly as a gladiator and ranking up high enough to challenge the Grand Champion.

The roar of the crowd progressively becomes louder as my platform rises, the screams sounding so loud it's like putting my face directly into a tank engine!

A sandy and open space enters my view as my platform rises to a halt, heavy steel bars prevent me from prematurely accessing the arena so I instead stand close and use the opportunity to scout the interior battle area.

The whole interior area is massive, almost six acres if I were to give it my best guess. I crane my head up and look into the stands, even though there's only a few hundred people in total they cheer with the same liveliness of thousands. With just a quick analysis it's easy to understand this place is a to scale recreation of the actual Colosseum in Italy.

Once again, I find myself being impressed with the Romans capacity for engineering and the will to actually create builds like this!

Suddenly a gruff and manly voice echoes out from some hidden speaker system, causing the crowd to cheer with even more frenzy.

"WELCOME, WELCOME GOOD CITIZENS TO THE ARENA!" The crowd _somehow_ cheers even louder, "YOU'VE COME FOR A FIGHT… AND A FIGHT YOU SHALL HAVE! WE'VE GOT A SPECIAL MATCH TODAY! SIX WHELPS WILL GIVE IT THEIR ALL IN A KNOCKOUT MATCH, BUT ONLY ONE MAY BECOME OUR NEW PITDOG! LLLOOOWERR THE GATES!"

The old rusty gates slowly lower, no doubt at the current speed just for the dramatic effect of it. I pull my peace sign bandana from my pocket and shake it once, the fabric transforming into its metal Corinthian Helmet form.

I feel along the golden helmet, admiring _Ram's_ beauty and letting the power ebb into me. I grin and place _Ram_ on my head, instantly an intoxicating power flows into me. I feel alive, more powerful than I've ever been!

The cage finally disappears into the ground beneath my feet, and slowly I take cautious steps out into the arena proper. Five other contenders walk with me in even spaces along the other walls of the arena. Each of them is young and fresh faced, barely scarred and only armed with light Roman chest pieces and steel gladiuses. Some have Roman style tower shields but only a couple.

Their eyes scan out nervously across the field, likely this is the most intense combat they've faced.

I spin my cane sword around in my hand, letting it flow loosely around my grip. The steel bands engraved into my right arm flicker to life, the enchanted metal transforming into a round and elegantly engraved Ghisi shield.

The five other warriors all give me nervous glances as they scan my loud out, the young legionaries being intimidated by my more advanced gear.

Remembering the rules, we turn up to the King's Box as Reyna sits in an immaculate throne, Blake off to her side and another strange man who is _freakishly_ tall to her other side. I can't make out much of his features, but his sold gold imperial armor and falcata by his hip point out his position as being a high-tier warrior.

I shudder as I sense the magic emanating from his sword, whatever ability it's enchanted with is immensely powerful. Reyna stands from her throne and briefly makes eye contact with me, I give her a subtle nod and she turns her gaze out to the other fighters.

"Welcome warriors! Today marks the beginning of a new age for Rome! I'm proud to announce for the first time since the eighteen hundreds, Greeks shall be fighting within our Arena!"

The crowd applauds if tersely, some mutterings and a few stray shouts of protest voice from the crowd, but Reyna ignores the uneasiness of the crowd and continues her speech.

"Along with the Greeks, many warriors from many kingdoms have sent Champions in their honor to test the might of Rome, and here they shall find no simple warriors! Our guest contenders must prove themselves in a trial by fire, if the Greek is the last standing they shall be anointed amongst the ranks of our gladiators! Let the match… BEGIN!"

On her command the five other legion recruits charge at each other in what I can only describe as a Roman orgy without sex. I mean _seriously?_ All they're doing is smacking each other with swords in a giant human ball. There's no skill or sportsmanship!

I briefly glance at Reyna as she pinches the bridge of her nose as the Probatio continue their embarrassing display, clearly upset with her recruit's example.

People in the crowd cheer, but with much less enthusiasm then from before. Some even point and laugh at the ball of struggling legionaries.

Deciding the crowd would like some _real_ entertainment, I charge magic power into my fist for a second and drive it into the ground, the stone floor cracking as a fissure crawls its way toward the group of struggling fighters and explodes beneath their feet in a blast of blinding light.

The wind from the spell launching the whelps to the far wall of the arena and blowing against everyone in the stands like a hurricane. They scream and struggle for a second as the wind dies down, leaving the entire crowd completely stunned, not a single person making a sound.

Suddenly they jump to their feet and _scream_ in passion and excitement, the sound almost deafening as they cheer with newly found vigor.

" _GRAECUS! GRAECUS! GRAECUS!"_

They cheer and holler at me to the complete embarrassment of the Legion Probatio representing them in the arena. Guess the crowd cares about the showiest person regardless of their heritage?

My eyes flicker to Reyna as she stares at me with wide and dumfounded eyes. I give her a cheeky grin and she quickly recovers her neutral stoic persona, smoothing her robes out as she gives me the slightest hint of a smile.

I turn back to my foes in the arena and find myself pleasantly surprised. The five enemy fighters decided to band together in a temporary alliance and face off against me as a single unit.

The crowd roars in excitement at the turn of events and the Probatio form simple if poorly setup ranks, two shield wielders in the center with the three-swordsman covering their sides. The squad advances on me, fearful yet prideful eyes shining beneath their helmets.

I set myself up in a standard guard position with my shield extended out and slowly retreat backwards. The Probatio smirk at me with self-assurance and I roll my eyes at their arrogance. Typical fools, finding strength in numbers. But like any mob, split them up and they scatter like dandelions in the wind.

A spell could be fun to use right now, but I decide it's best not to show all my cards in just the initiation match. That means sword and shield only.

I twist the handle on my cane and it extends into its whip form. The crowd oo's in amazement and I snap the whip threateningly, showing off and riling the crowd up further.

The quintuplet slows their advance and murmurs behind the shields to themselves, taking their eyes away from me. Sensing the weakness in them, I lash out with my whip and let it flurry out to the two shields.

Metal screams and sparks crazily as I send wave after wave of fierce strikes at the shields, targeting the center shield where the arm is located.

The shields-men grit their teeth in pain as I work on the defenses, just a bit longer and they'll break ranks and go on the offensive. I ignore the roar of the crowd and lash out a particularly strong horizontal whip across the group.

I grin as the shields are split completely in half from my lashing, the weakened metal from my previous assault worked the durability of the simple shields down so much a heavy enough swing just ends up breaking them!

The two shield wielders fall to the ground with a cry and the three swordsmen jump over them and charge at me with a roar while screaming something I can't make out in Latin.

I twist my handle again and the whip whirs as it returns to its sword form. I'm back in my guard position just in time as the first Roman comes _flying_ at me, only for me to duck under him and guide him over my body with my shield, throwing the fool several feet back.

A gladius from the second Roman goes to stab my middle, so I parry the strike away with my sword and follow up by jabbing the edge of my shield into the side of his helmet. The metal gongs loudly and the fighter stumbles for a bit before collapsing to the ground unconscious.

The third Roman continues the same tactic as the first and just charges at me with his sword raised for a stab. I roll my eyes at his simple tactic and kick him in the gut King Leonidas style and he goes flying back through the air and only stops when he crashes into one of the rising shield users.

I spin around and deflect an overhead strike from the first Roman with my shield and smack my cane into his leg, the bone cracking with a sick noise as the serrate edge bites into his skin and draws blood. He screams in pain and collapses to the ground in a wailing mess.

I pivot on my foot and spin around as the final three fighters stand shoulder to shoulder, the two discarding their broken shields and drawing short swords. They advance again as a unit and I roll my eyes at their foolish recycling of tactics.

Deciding to have some fun, I refrain from opening my whip up again and let this duel continue with swords and shields only.

They're one me in a few moments and they lash out with quick but weak jabs, my instincts in battle take over and I find myself pleasantly surprised to find that parrying three fighters attacks simultaneously to be more then easy for.

Over and over the three remaining fighters swing and stab at me to no effect, the crowd roars in passion as I have fun and continue deflecting all three fighters with a blur of speed and accuracy.

Eventually the fighters begin slowing down as exhaustion sets in. Remembering a move I learned from Joseph, I focus my enemies attention upwards to their chests and heads, leaving their unarmored legs ignored and exposed.

Quick like lightning I bring my sword and transform it midswing into its whip form, letting it whistle through the air as I for a giant oval shape and rake the serrated metal pieces on the whip along the shins of the three boys simultaneously, cutting deep in the bone and throwing the caught blood into the wall far away.

The trio collapses to their feet and groans and cries in pain, however their pitiful screams and cries are drowned out as the patrons jump to their feet and cheer me on in victory.

" _GRAECUS! GRAECUS! GRAECUS!"_

I raise my sword and shield in the air and the rally of people cheer me on with even more vigor. Reyna rises from her seat and claps along with the crowd, a smile very clear on her face now. Blake nods at me resolutely and claps alongside his Preator, even the mystery man joins in on the excitement and claps too.

"AND THERE YOU HAVE IT; THE GREEK IS THE WINNER! CONGRATULATIONS WINNER, YOU HAVE NOW BECOME THE NEWEST PITDOG! YOU MAY LEAVE THE ARENA NOW AND REST, YOU'VE EARNED IT!"

I'm practically giddy as I return to my assigned platform, the cage closing and the platform lowering back into the depths of the arena. Even far beneath the ground the roar of the crowd is still audible. I come to a stop in the combatant area known as the Bloodworks, and instantly I'm swept up in a bone crushing from Troy.

The Myrmidon lifts me in the air as the fighter's clap and cheer for me. I'm surprised and honestly a little overwhelmed. Not a single person in the Bloodworks wasn't cheering happily for me. Troy was right, it is one big family down here!

Food is passed around to everyone and we all dig in, apparently it's a tradition for a feast to be held in honor for new recruits that prove themselves against many enemies like I had. At some point alcohol was passed around as well and in only a few hours the entirety of the fighters here are passed out drunk on the floor.

Troy unconsciously wraps an arm around me like a teddy bear and squeezes me tight against him. No matter what I try I can't pry myself from his grip. Deciding to just accept my fate, I lean against him and close my eyes, my dreams filled with nothing but the euphoria of victory.

* * *

My next fight isn't until later today, so I decided to take a stroll around New Rome and see the sights. My impression I had from before is still there, this place is almost a replica of old Rome.

" _Get yer bleedin' cracked hands off me you fookin jackass!"_

I stop immediately in my tracks. That voice… It-it couldn't be them, right?

" _I'm a purebred Fire House ya' stook! Best thank your da' you're fire proof otherwise you'd be charcoal ya' ugly chancer!"_

That totally fucking is! I push my way past a group of gossiping girls and dead sprint towards the source of the voice. Damn these stupid houses, there's so many of them!

I break through the house line and see that the city stables are located away from the houses in the field down the way. I'm back to sprinting down through the fields of flowers and grass. It takes me a minute, but I arrive at the fenced off pasture. I vault over the fence and of course land in a giant pile of horse shit.

" _Good moves there Graecus. Want to jump over and try it again?"_

I glare at the horse that watched me land in the crap pile and they just snort and start trotting away. I almost want to ask them about my horse, but they seem really posh and I'd rather not punch a horse today.

" _Throw yer' fists up creep! Come on, give it to me!"_

Alright, screw it! I run through the shit covered fields (gods why don't these assholes clean up?) and run towards the main building. I practically rip the gate off of its hinges and storm inside the barn.

My eyes widen as I see that familiar auburn colored hair, that fire eyed spitball of (maybe?) Irish fury. Horse has always been huge, so big three people could comfortably ride on his back with him only complaining about it and not _actually_ getting tired.

Fury overtakes me as I see that heavy chains are tied to his legs, the chains so short he can barely lift his hooves off the dirty floor of his stable. A heavy steel muzzle covers his snout, smoke and steam with small blasts of fire escape the nostril vents but harmlessly blow away in the air.

A heavy and burly looking Son of Vulcan wrestles with Horse, the huge boy yanking on chains attached to an iron collar. I take a closer look at Horse and see patches of empty fur, scars and chaffing from old armor being the culprit for his patchy fur.

"Gods you stupid fucking horse! Just quite fighting and submit already!" The boy takes a small whip and starts lazily beating against Horse, causing him to struggle even more violently.

My vision goes red for what seems like barely a second, my body going on autopilot with only vague and muffled sounds of some kind of scuffle being recognizable to me. Eventually my vision returns along with my motor control and I can't help but blanche at my furious actions.

The huge boy, who was easily three hundred pounds of muscle, is half way through the brick wall. Blood and chipped teeth are on the floor, and a quick feel tells me they aren't mine. The boys leg twitches minutely, so thankfully I didn't commit murder. However, looking at what he did to Horse I'm starting to reconsider.

I turn to Horse and use some of my magic to snap the chains and remove them from him. Some more healing magic I learned from an Apollo camper then helps with the open wounds. Horse neighs in content as the soothing relief of freedom washes over his tired body.

After a second he walks to me with shaky legs and bumps me roughly with his head. I lean against it and gently rub along the length of his neck, both of us content with the comfort.

" _You don't even know how happy I am to see ya' lad! Gods what took ya' so long?! Been waiting here dealing with these cunts fer years!"_

I chortle at Horse's foul yet loving language and scratch by his ears in just the spot he likes.

"Sorry about that friend, I was held up with some stuff. Can't say I'm out of the fire yet, things are still complicated."

Horse snorts indignantly, _"They ever not? Who cares about that stupid shite now? What's the dealeo jack? Never seen you this gloomy before."_

I continue to stroke and love Horse as I spend several minutes recounting my journey ever since Mori freed me from my prison. Horse throws his distasteful and loving comments in there every so often and I feel a weight in my heart slowly vanish with every comment.

Eventually we come full circle and end with Horse's tale of arriving at Camp Jupiter.

" _So there I am just mindin' me own business when some fat fucker throws a net over me! I kicked his ugly teeth out when some jack sticks me with a needle. My eyes get heavy and next thing I know I'm wakin' up in some cramped hauler! I blow the thing up and find out they took me all the way to California! Fuckin' tarts wanted to sell me to some breeder way out there. Don't know how but I end up in this field and some Vulcan chancers are chaining me up and throwing me in that cell they call a stable! Fatty over there tried breakin' me for years, probably thought I'd be a 'worthy' steed for the Puerto Rican lass runnin' the place. Then you show up and throw the fuck through the wall, good on you lad I've been wanting to do that since day one!"_

"Glad I got here just in time then. Come on, let's get you out of this place. These other horses around here are too posh for my liking!"

" _You and me agree there brother. Prissy mares don't know what a real stallion looks like! Oh, and before I forget."_

The groggy and bloody face Son of Vulcan groans and slowly pulls himself from the hole in the wall, only for him to turn around and get donkey kicked by Horse straight through it and land in a pile of shit on the outside.

" _Take that ya' fat fuck! Okay, I've made ma' peace now. Lets go win ye' that tournament now!"_


	47. Chapter 47

**A/N: Samson is now officially a Roman gladiator! Plus he's reunited with our favorite cursing, Irish horse. That's most friends off the list, now I wonder what happened to Mori? Don't worry, they'll reunite later. Now we're in Rome, and Rome is famous for all kinds of plots and hidden things happening. Will Samson survive? Of course he will, kids immortal remember?**

* * *

 _With Reyna, spring 2011_

Woe to me, being the Queen of the Romans… Don't give me that look, it's true! I love Frank to death (He give _killer_ back massages) but the boy is way too nice and lets many things slide. Then, as always, those things he lets slide ends up falling on my shoulders.

Though since Frank is apparently a massaging expert, I have wonderfully loose shoulders. So I suppose it's fine having a bit of an easier going Praetor, generally alleviates stress around camp and means that there's a high ranking officer anyone can approach.

Seriously, Frank makes friends with just about any person he meets!

I sigh in frustration and take a swig of my 'make Reyna happy' juice. Ever since that boy Samson has got to camp the senate has practically been pounding my ass. Only Peter gets to do that!

Larry especially is wailing on me hard, I think he's got the senate in an uproar because he's despites the Greeks. Though it does seem fair, he did lose quite a few members of his cohort during the Civil war last year.

I take another swig of my happy juice and lean back in my office chair. Blake should be arriving soon, and Amos should be here not long after.

Thank Jupiter Amos is an actually approachable and understanding king. The last guy was and is bat shit insane, how in Gaea's green world Hylla chose to let that psycho defile her is beyond me.

Suddenly I freeze and realize that my boyfriend… is exactly the same crazy. Oh fuck me silly, I guess it must be a Ramirez-Arellano family tradition for girls to be defiled by insane psycho murders!

I take another sip of my wine-I mean happy juice and shrug. Oh well, from what Hylla's told me her psycho is great and bed and mine is too. I wonder if statistically insane dudes fuck good?

The door to my office flies open, and I quickly hide my wine under my desk and straighten myself out as Blake marches surely to me, head held high and face as stoic as Jupiter himself.

It's slightly unnerving comparing Blake to when I first met him, a wide-eyed boy unsure of himself that slowly transformed into a Legate as honorable and proud as commanders from old Rome. Heartbreak, war and death will do that to you, though I wonder if I'll ever see that old Blake again?

"Praetor, we have a problem," Blake states plainly, " _Larry_ is getting the senate in an uproar, I think he's trying to ban our man from advancing."

I sigh deeply and take my wine bottle out from my desk. Blake raises an eyebrow at me but wisely keeps his trap shut!

" _Larry_ is always getting the senate up in arms. I swear he's channeling Octavian with how he's acting. Even then, he has no right to ban someone from the arena without going through me. Which logically means he's up to something else. Keep an ear out Blake, _Larry_ is smart and wealthy. I've no doubt he has something nasty in plan for Samson."

"Yes Praetor! I'll get right on it!"

He turns to leave, but I quickly call out and stop him.

"Wait. Blake, not yet. I'm curious, you've met _The Mystic_ before and I've read your report from the mission, yet I haven't seen you so emotional in a while. What is it you aren't telling me?"

"…Samson is a… _character._ You've seen it yourself, he's remarkably powerful and not respectful to anyone in a position of power at all. That alone makes him dangerous, but what got me so… riled up is just his incredible ability to somehow cause trouble without trying."

I groan and take another swig of my wine, "Great, another Samuel. What does that make them, a duo? The Sam's? I hope those two never meet, the whole world would explode."

"Agreed. Just be cautious with him, something is bound to happen sooner or later."

"Hmm, very well, thank you, Legate. You are dismissed."

He nods and swivels around and marches out of my office, leaving me alone to drink my stress away until I can get Frank away from Hazel long enough to give me a shoulder rub.

I wonder if Hylla has any slaves that are good at massages? She'd probably sell them at a discount, though now that I think about it a concubine sounds good about right now. Peter _and_ another guy? Dude… _hell yes._

My door slams open again and of course it has to be _Larry_ stomping towards me threateningly. Well, not really, he's super skinny and not all that much of a warrior. He became a centurion mostly because of his recommendation letter. Without it he'd at most be a foot soldier based on his showable skill.

" _Larry_ , what a surprise. What, do you want to request another sex slave or something?"

"TIFFANY IS NOT-" He coughs into his fist and smooths out his dark hair, "Look, I demand to know what you're planning with that churlish _Graecus?!"_

I raise one of my immaculate eyebrows at him and put up my ignorant façade.

"Churlish? I see you've expanded your dictionary, how wonderful for you."

His pale face becomes red with rage and embarrassment and it takes all of my willpower not to smirk and make it worse.

"If you've had ENOUGH I am _trying_ to address this situation you've put us in!"

"And what situation is that? Having a Greek in camp has been great if the cheers from the citizens in the stand is anything to go on. Our revenues and trade have almost doubled, we're richer and happier than we've ever been."

"At what cost _Reyna?!_ The honor of the Legion? The purity of our culture?! Rome must stay strong and dominant above the rest! Foreigners make us weaker! New enemies are appearing every day, the shadow company, the witch in the north, even rumors of Vikings and Pharaohs!"

"Precisely why we need _allies._ Old Rome fell because we were alone and corrupted, new people brings new ideals. Change is the future, unity is our security. Open your mind _Larry,_ maybe then you'll see what's good for Rome."

He scoffs and starts marching away, saying his final warning before slamming my door shut, "I _do_ know what's good for Rome! Can you say the same _Praetor?!"_

I give him a harsh glare and _Larry_ eeps and quickly slams the door shut. I sigh deeply and lean back in my chair. Gods why do Romans have to be petty, dramatic assholes?

 _Larry_ is getting ballsy now, confronting me directly and indirectly threatening me. Blake better get _Larry_ off my as soon, I'm counting on _The Mystic_ to beat the Champion and prove to the Legion that Greeks aren't weak. Once I have public support it will become significantly easier to publicly announce an alliance with Camp Half Blood.

My door slams open and I groan audibly.

"For Jupiter's sake what the Pluto is it now?!"

The invader chuckles and slowly walks into the candlelit light, "Rough night there Reyna? Guess it must be if you're half way through that bottle of wine there. Is that Bacchus's brand? Damn Reyna, that shit is almost poison. What's the percentage, eighty-five?"

"Ninety-five actually. Sorry Amos, just a little stressed out right now, you know how Roman politicians are."

He snorts distastefully and adjusts his blood red cape on his shoulders, clearly showing off the fact that he's a king with an admittedly cool power.

"Politicians, gotta love him. Anyways just wanted to announce my arrival, Frank let me in but I thought it's good to meet with _both_ leaders. Though I've been hearing some rumors going around, something about a Greek fighting in the Colosseum? You wouldn't happen to be acting like one of those famous 'Roman Politicians' you hate so much?"

He gives me a shit eating grin and it takes every ounce of my slipping conscious not to jump up and deck him across the face. Being that I'm half a minute away from becoming shit faced drunk, my course of action stead is to drop my head onto my solid wooden desk.

Ouch.

"Ouch, that rough huh? Seriously though, sounds like you've got some sneaky things planned."

"It's Rome, everyone has sneaky things planned. All I'm trying to do is get a Greek champion to win in the arena and help me secure an alliance with Camp Half Blood. Of course I have a senator seven inches in my ass instead."

Amos raises an eyebrow and gives me a slightly disgusted look. I squint at him for a few seconds before I realize what I said and wave him off.

"Not like that. Look, it's no big deal. I've handled bigger pieces of shit in the past and won. This is just another obstacle I have to crush."

"Now you sound like Hylla. I wouldn't worry about it, besides don't you have that one black-haired girl in the arena too? She's strong enough to win."

I groan and clutch my stomach, fuck I think it's not mixing well in there.

"She _could_ win, but it won't have the same effect. She's Greek but also a Hunter, and Romans universally despise the Hunt. No, I need a pure Greek to win."

"Then your Champion has his work cut out for him." He whistles sadly, "I doubt fighting against the Daughter of Zeus will be an easy task."

* * *

 _With Samson, spring 2011_

" _You've got your work cut out for ya' lad, been around here a while and overheard some things. The Gargareans brought in a powerful champion, rumor has it he's a witch killer."_

"A witch hunter? Sounds dangerous, only a few people can specialize in hunting magic. Anything else you heard about him? Armor, weapons, powers?"

" _No clue, only heard what the gossipers said. Watch your back friend, words gone around about some plots and shenanigans."_

"It's Rome, is there never not any? Oh well, I fight in an Arena and that's it. I'll let Reyna handle all the politics and crap, she specializes in it anyways."

Horse snorts and lays his head down in my lap. Thankfully he still has the power to turn into his mini-horse form, so sneaking him down into my bunk in the Bloodworks was significantly easy.

I didn't have to try really, I showed him to the handler upstairs and she cooed and let him pass without even a second thought. Horse made a distasteful comment about his junk and now we're planning as best we can.

It's been nearly a week now and I've slowly been climbing the ranks slowly but surely. Matches are challenging but really fun, Roman gladiators are fierce in the Arena but family down in the common rooms.

Troy and I have really been hitting it off, the Myrmidon telling me more about his past and reasons for fighting in the arena as his sole reason in life.

Apparently, years ago his father was a powerful Centurion of a cohort, many even said he was on his way to becoming a Praetor. Unfortunately, tragedy struck and a quest he lead ended with many of his soldiers dying.

He was disgraced and his family was almost banished, only by the grace of the previous augur were they allowed to stay in New Rome. Things didn't end there unfortunately. Troy's mother died in child birth and his father fell into a severe depression after. He was only ten when his father took his life and orphaned him, Troy became a gladiator and has been training for the past twelve years to become champion and return honor to his family name.

Lanius, the current Grand Champion, is a man of legend and has been a gladiator for the past twenty years. Troy hopes to challenge and defeat him, which leaves me insanely conflicted.

Firstly, I don't want to kill anybody. Secondly is that if Troy wins… I have to kill him. So I've been stressed out for the past week, fighting a crazy amount of battles and advancing as quickly as possible so I can defeat Lanius first and pass the title willingly over to Troy.

I don't know if he'll be happy at all if I defeat Lanius first, but it's what I have to do to save his life.

"GRAECUS! GATHER YOUR SUPPLIES, IT'S YOUR TURN! BRING YOUR A-GAME, IT'S AN ADVANCEMENT MATCH!"

I sigh and rise from my bunk. Horse walks over with the rest of the gladiators to the viewing rooms as I split off and make my way towards the platform elevator thing.

The roar of the crowds is especially fierce today, not that I can blame them. The announcer mentioned that it's an advancement match, so that's always a reason for an especially lively crowd.

My platform shakes lightly from the pounding of feet as it rises to the combat area. I shake off my worries and focus on my upcoming battle. Ram is placed firmly on my head and the power further calms down my worries.

"WELCOME, WELCOME GOOD PEOPLE OF THE LEGION… TO THE ARENA! WE'VE GOT A SPECIAL MATCH TODAY! THE WINNER OF TODAYS MATCH WILL ADVANCE TO THE RANK OF BLOODLETTER! AND THAT'S NOT ALL, TODAY'S FIGHTERS ARE TWO VISITORS FROM FAR OFF LANDS. LORDS AND LADIES, I PRESENT TO YOU _THE HAMMER!_ CHAMPION OF THE GARGAREAN KING AMOS!"

My ears ring from the fierce screams of the crowd as… _The Hammer's_ cage opens and a massive mountain of shiny steel struts out into the arena, lifting a MASSIVE Warhammer into the air, pumping it up and down with the cries of the crowd.

I spy on his equipment from behind my bars. The dude is huge, easily an inch shy of seven feet with the tall plume of his helmet giving the impression he's over seven foot. His armor looks like the heavy plate armor knights from medieval Europe would wear. It's shiny (recently polished) and trimmed with gold.

His Warhammer is huge, made from a material I can't quite place. The thing looks almost like a sledgehammer from a cartoon. The double heads look like the size infants from here, _The Hammer_ lifts and swings the weapon around arrogantly like it was made of wood.

Besides his armor my foe also wields a giant silver tower shield almost the size of himself. My eyes widen as I feel the magic radiating from it and recognize the design.

I made that shield! It was a magic shield that gives the artifact the ability to completely reflect magic and kinetic energy. It was a prototype for my current shield, but the material necessary for the enchantment was too heavy so I sold it to an old friend.

It's design was the basis I used to design my Ghisi shield. Even though that shield has a more powerful spell on it my current one is better suited to my fighting style.

That means my foe is essentially the opposite of myself. He's sure to be slow and guarded but delivers powerful blows I could never match. Dude could probably knock a cyclops out with that hammer!

"AND IN THE OPPOSITE CORNER, WE HAVE A VISITOR FROM THE FAR EAST! LORDS AND LADIES, I GIVE YOU THE SORCERER GRAECUS, _TTTTTTTHE_ _MYSTIC!"_

My cage opens and I strut out and give the crowd a show, whipping my cane around and smacking it in the air, the loud crack echoing loudly and further riling the crowd up.

I take a peek at the king's box and see a new person has joined Reyna next to her throne. He's younger looking, donned in Spartan style armor with a super stylish and clearly powerful cape. The magic is subtle, but what I sense tells me it's powerful.

This must be the Gargarean king the announcer mentioned. He seems like a nice enough man, he locks eyes with me when he notices and gives me a small nod. Reyna gives me a quick look, something glints in her eyes but somehow reassures me she's handling it.

I turn back to my enemy as his mad yellow eyes glare at me from the shadows of his helmet. Even though he has a face plate I'm sure he's grinning like an insane person.

We stand our ground as we wait the command, both of us sizing the other up with arrogant surety.

"ENOUGH STANDING AROUND! LET THE MATCH… BEGIN!"

 _The Hammer_ is on me in an instant, smashing the ground I had just been in only a fraction of a second ago. I grit my teeth as I slide away on the sand, that man was fast. _Very_ fast! How in the world is that man so fast?!

His hammer blows a small crater in the ground, and quickly he rips it out and charges at me with a furious roar. I duck under his swing and jab at the armor under his armpits, the blow bouncing harmlessly off his chainmail undercoat.

I quickly roll backwards from a shield punch only to barely bring my shield up and cover my body as his child sized hammer slams into it, knocking the air from my lungs and throwing me back several feet. I use the momentum to roll back up to my feet, just in time to dodge a hammer blow and counter with a fierce jab into his visor.

The blunt end of my cane bounces off his visor but hits with enough force to dent it in slightly. It doesn't bend far, but still shows there's a weakness in his defenses.

 _The Hammer_ grunts and clutches his helmet, stepping backwards as his helmet rings loudly. I jump up and jab at his helmet again, striking the same place and causing the same effect.

Suddenly he lashes out and bashes me with his huge shield, knocking me far away and throwing me into the wall. I cough out some golden blood and rise back to my feet again. The crowd screams and hollers in excitement, clearly loving the bloody combat.

I wipe away the blood from my mouth and glare at the knight, my foe swinging his hammer around and walking carefully towards me. The corner of his visor is dented in, most likely blocking his vision in that side.

I turn my cane into its whip form and swing it around, making sure it's still functioning properly. A few test swings show it still works, so I level my gaze with _The Hammer_ and lash it out. He hides behind his shield as my whip scrapes against it, doing no damage more than scratching the paint.

Thankfully my plan is working, he's hiding behind the shield so much that he can't see anything at all. Slowly I walk carefully, keeping my strikes up in a consistent pattern so he doesn't notice I'm getting closer.

Using my skills I learned in sneaking from Annabeth I end up within a few feet of my foe, his armor clinks suddenly and I duck under a horizontal swing from his hammer, the wind rustling my hair from the speed.

His shield comes around for another bash, so I swivel around it and strike at his helmet again, hitting the same bent metal and pushing it far inwards.

Hammer brings his fist around, still clutching his hammer, and bashes me in the head. He sends me to my feet as he screams in pain, clawing at his helmet. Red blood seeps out from his visor and leaks down his armor.

I swing myself back to my feet and stand back cautiously. Hammer screams in fury and rips his helmet free, throwing it high into the stands where a young boy snatches it up and holds it high to the cheers of the crowd.

The Hammer turns his gaze back to me, his second yellow eye shut tight and bleeding profusely. His short orange hair shines brightly in the sun and his tanned skin is coated with a multitude of scars.

I bring myself up into a guard position as his thundering footsteps shake the floor with each step. Quickly he lunges at me, swinging his hammer down and creating a crater by my feet. I jump over his swing and vault over him, smacking his head with my shield on my way over.

He quickly swings around with his hammer to strike at me, I try and parry it away with my shield but his strength keeps its trajectory unhindered. I barely crane away but he hits my shoulder, rattling my bones and almost certainly dislocating it.

I hiss and use the edge of my shield to jab the back of his neck. He coughs loudly and stumbles forward. Quickly I back peddle and feel my shield arm. Yup, that shit's dislocated! I grunt in pain and push my shoulder in, the bone crunching grossly and my arm screaming in absolute pain.

Hammer turns around and rolls his neck, grunting in discomfort. He turns his good eye to me and it narrows into a dangerous dot. His lips pull into a feral smile and he starts jobbing after me. I condense my cane and attach it to my belt, my sword arm too injured to use it properly any more.

He launches a vertical swing at me and I use both of my arms to parry it away. My shoulder hisses in pain but I ignore it and keep pushing away every swing of the Warhammer with both arms.

Quickly our battle becomes a back and forth of dodge, parry and strike. My arms feel heavy and numb from every strike I'm forced to dodge, my plan to work down Hammer's stamina seeming to fail. This guy doesn't get tired at all!

I grit my teeth push his hammer away with an extra exertion. I only barely move his hammer and my shoulder suddenly jolts in pain. _The Hammer_ swings his shield to smack me so, I swivel around his shield and jab the edge of my shield into the joint of his armor. I hit with all the strength I can muster several times over and I get lucky, breaking the rivets and dislocating the arm armor from his shoulder.

Hammer grunts in confusion as he feels his armor shift and loosen. He spins around and faces me again. I unhook my cane and extend it into whip form. I've opened up a vital part of his armor, if I get a good hit in I can possibly disable his arm if I cut deep enough!

He roars and charges at me hammer held high. I notice he's much slower now and guess he's finally starting to tire down. I snap my whip and swing it around, forcing Hammer to raise his shield and block it. He decides to keep running and shield bash me, I wait for the last moment and roll away as he races past me.

Quickly I rise up to my feet and swing my whip, striking it out and breaking it point blank against the exposed skin of the loose armor.

It cracks loudly, and Hammer screams and drops his shield, the speed the whip cracks breaking the sound barrier and his bones at the same time. I wouldn't have been able to hurt him like this, but with the weakness I exposed it leaves his flesh vulnerable.

Step one of my plan has succeeded so far. Now that he can't use his shield Hammer is limited to defending with his armor. He roars in fury and starts advancing after me, wielding his hammer with one hand while the other lies limply to his side.

My cane reverts to its sword form and I come back to my standard guard position. Hammer advances towards me, breathing heavily with some difficulty. I guess his broken arm hurts him much more than I thought.

Now that he's without the shield I _could_ use magic, but it's better to save it for a later fight. Troy advised me to keep some tricks up my sleeve for a difficult opponent and saving my spells for Lanius is probably for the best.

Hammer quickly swings at me, his Warhammer swinging out much faster then it was before. Dammit, without the weight of the shield he's much quicker and more agile now!

I can only just barely dodge his swings now, each one just missing me by a hair. However, this means that I can't fight back either! He's got me backed into a corner!

He's without a shield, but that means nothing since his greatest skill is with that damn hammer! How am I going to get it away from him?

Clearly the stone around the arena means nothing to his strength, and there's no metal around for him to accidentally strike. The only thing I have is… his shield!

I spot his shield laying a way's away, how the fuck can I get to it in time?! I sigh in frustration and suck it up. I have to run away!

Hammer swings widely and I use the opportunity to quickly poke him in the eye with my cane. He grunts and swings wildly around himself, and I use the opening to run away from him and snatch up his shield.

The crowd boos and laughs as I run away from him, but I ignore the twang in my heart and quickly snatch the shield up and raise it with a heavy grunt.

Hammer spots me using his shield and he screams an insult at me, the crowd cheering him on with their blood lust. I plant my feet firmly and raise the shield high, bracing myself for the huge amount of pain I'm about to be in.

He sprints at me with fury, each step shaking the ground as he holds his hammer high with both hands, ignoring the pain from using his broken arm.

His shadow looms over me like a mountain over a valley and I gulp as I loosen my muscles and brace the shield.

The sounds of his hammer smashing down onto my old shield is like putting my ear next to an explosion. The sound booms like thunder, my arms scream and groan from the overwhelming strength of the strike. However, between the ringing in my ears and the gong of metal I hear Hammer scream and throw his weapon to the ground. I grin at his misfortune and the success of my plan!

I baited him into striking the shield and the rebound magic I enchanted it with sent the strength of his impact straight back into his arms. Broken arm becoming truly shattered and his unbroken arm cracking even through his armor.

My legs shake as I throw the shield down and rise victorious over my opponent. My arms tingle with lingering numbness and my vision still spins, but I still stand none the less!

 _The Hammer_ is laid out on the ground, coughing up small amounts of blood between his laughs. Slowly he sits up and gives me a toothy and bloody grin.

"Heh- good job mate. I give up!"

And then he falls backwards unconscious. The arena is silent for a second and I groan, fuck did they not like the fight? Then the crowd unleashes a roar of victorious frenzy, all standing and cheering me on, shouting 'Mystic' so loud they can probably hear it up on Olympus.

"BY JUPITER HE'S DONE IT! THE MYSTIC HAS DEFEATED THE HAMMER WITH A CLEVER KNOCKOUT! THE GARGAREAN CHAMPION HAS BEEN BESTED, LORDS AND LADIES OUR GUEST WARRIOR HAS RISEN TO THE RANKS OF BLOODLETTER! BLOODLETTER, RETURN TO THE BLOODWORKS NOW AND REST! YOU'VE EARNED IT!"

* * *

I swear I've been asleep for days after my victory against the Gargarean champion. Horse kicks me in the leg as I awake, yelling at me about how he's been trying to wake me up for hours.

The Bloodworks are empty when my vision clears, Horse screams at me to quickly run to the viewing rooms upstairs. I throw my blanket off and run through the hallway leading to the other rooms.

It takes me a second, but I end up in the viewing rooms, almost the entirety of the gladiators are squeezed around the viewing bars that look out into the arena. I force my way through the group and gaze out into the arena, my eyes wide in horror as I see the familiar face of my friend fighting for his life.

Troy is bloody and beaten, his armor cracked and destroyed, cuts and gashes leaking blood all over the arena as the crowd cheers on for more bloody.

My hearing becomes direct, the muffled cries of the crowd drowning out as Troy faces off against a mountain of a man in golden armor and an unnerving mask. The strange man who must be Lanius stands proud like a god, power practically oozing off of him.

The Grand Champion's sword is massive, like a chunk of steel was ripped from a tank and shaped into an immaculate engraved bastard sword.

Troy is down on one knee, clutching his gut as he supports himself with his axe. He grunts and groans, blood pouring from his belly as he glares at Lanius. The gleam in his eyes is all but gone, that shine of pride and surety leaking from him like the blood he's quickly losing.

A strange feeling prickles at my eyes. Oh? Tears, and lots of them.

Troy struggles, doing his best to rise and attack Lanius just one last time. He fails, quite miserably too. Troy can barely squirm, let alone raise his axe. He struggles and falls to the dirty ground, splashing in his own pool of blood.

Tears leak from his eyes as he beats a fist into the bloody ground in defeat, splashing dirt and blood all over his face. Ugly sobs wrack his body, the realization of his vain attempt at honoring his family destroying his spirit.

Lanius in now standing over Troy, not a word passing as he silently watches my friend cry like a child for several moments. His armor shifts and he brings his huge sword high into the air, the sunlight gleaming off of it and sparkling beautifully. It's kind of ironic, a tool of death looking as gorgeous as that one.

And then it comes down, stabbing straight through Troy's middle and digging deep into the ground. Troy gags, coughing up ugly amounts of blood as he grips weakly at Lanius's heel. He slaps it once, doing literally no damage but still trying to the very end.

 _Damn him, damn that fool!_

Then he goes still, those defeated eyes going blank. All life gone, just hollow orbs that hint to a man that was once great.

Lanius takes Troy's axe and marches soundly to the champion's platform, vanishing into the darkness and taking the legacy of a man I considered a brother with him.

The bars groan as I grip them tightly, my body shaking in rage as tears spill down my cheeks. Troy, I'm sorry. That should've been me out there, _you should be here with me!_

Lanius, mark my words. _I will fucking kill you!_


	48. Chapter 48

**A/N: Another round now, more fights! Poor Troy, he died as he lived. In vain and in pain. Anyways we're back at it, there's a super fun fight planned for today! Plus some more Reyna, always need our queen to get some good screen time.**

* * *

 _With Samson, spring 2011_

Spending time in New Rome has been an interesting event, seeing how things compare with Camp Half Blood has been pleasantly thrilling. Still, even Romans aren't safe from tragedy.

The warm sun has dipped down over the horizon, black skies covering high overhead as beautiful stars twinkle above. It's beautiful, picturesque even. By all means it should be fairly happy, but tonight it is now. A man has died, and his comrades in arms have gathered to burn his body and celebrate his life.

I don't know if it's a Roman thing, but Gladiators here hold their committal through burning the body like Camp Half Blood, just without a shroud. They're supposed to be burned with their weapons, an honor kind of thing.

Unfortunately, Lanius took Troy's axe. Apparently it's something he does for all challengers. Whether it's done as some kind of trophy thing or an honorable chaste whatnot I don't know. In the end Troy is being burned without his weapon, and I'm sitting here on a bench while a bunch of mourning gladiators get piss drunk and celebrate his life.

Men and women dance around merrily, singing and laughing, some have tears in their eyes while they do it. I guess even in 'happy' times like this they still are mourning.

Troy was a good man, beloved by all yet somehow not respected by any outside of his fellow gladiators. He fought for a long twelve years, right up until the very end, and thankfully it wasn't all for nothing.

Even just challenging Lanius is a sign of honor and respect. Troy may not have brought the honor he was looking for to his family name, but he was at least rewarded something for his hardships. It's just a shame that a boy had to work for ten years to his death because of his father's shortcomings.

What was the saying? 'The sins of the father are to be laid upon the children.' An unfortunate saying, but one that is very true even for mortals today. It's unfair, lurid and tragic for those who are the children.

I throw a flower I had been given by a faun onto the fire covering the body, watching morbidly as it shrivels into a black little stick that eventually turns into a small strip of ashes.

Fare thee well, friend Troy, may you find your peace in Elysium.

* * *

The funeral party has bled on for many hours, well passed midnight and into the deepest hours of the night. Over that time not a single person has slowed down or fallen asleep, Hades they've even gotten rowdier!

There's been several angry Romans and retired Legionnaires that have showed up and tried to make everyone shut up. Yeah, those people didn't last long. A couple gladiators would pick them up, quite literally too, and throw them into the pig den.

I tell you what, there's nothing quite as satisfying as watching a pompous Roman thrown into mud and pig shit.

As much as I try to bring myself to join the festivities with my fellow gladiators, I just can't find the energy to do it. It's weird, but I'm just… tired. Mentally, physically, all parts of me feel exhausted, like I just ran a marathon while completing my dissertation or something. I don't know, I don't think that's really doing it justice but that's the best comparison I can come up with.

I sigh and run my hand through my hair, gods I just want all of this to end…

"Hey, mind if I sit here?"

I turn my head and find myself pleasantly surprised. Reyna stands around the side of the bench, donned in jeans and a purple Camp Jupiter shirt only. Her hair braid is the same, but otherwise she just looks… normal. Huh, never thought I'd see the 'queen of Rome' looks like the nineteen-year-old she actually is.

"Go right ahead," I say and wave my arm over the open spot, "I'm not using the whole bench."

She nods quietly and swings her legs around and sits on the bench, crossing her legs respectfully and staring out into the warm flames that have long since burned Troy's body into ashes and coal.

We're both silent, not a word passing between us for many minutes as the party rages on. I take the moment to study Reyna some more, compare the myth of the famous Praetor of New Rome to the actual individual sitting beside me.

It doesn't take much of a genius to understand the legends created about her are there on purpose, something she created or cultivated to give her credibility. It's smart, clever even. She's a public figure, a leader of a people. You can't have a weak leader, especially when they're Roman. So she's created an image just like the old emperors did and she lives up to the legend by being a stern and powerful leader.

I can't sense emotions very well anymore, that power has slowly been numbing over the past few months. But I can still read a face very well, it's one of my most useful skills when understanding people and even gods.

So that makes it all the more apparent to me that Reyna is probably even more exhausted then I am. It's subtle, so much that any regular person would call me crazy for saying the Puerto Rican Praetor is about as exhausted as an elderly leader.

It's faint, nigh unnoticeable, but the lines under her eyes and the way she gazes, that's the look of someone who has seen too much too soon. For god's sake she's just a kid, not even legal to drink! Is this what Roman have to become when they're leaders? Tired teenagers who will never understand what rest is?

Reyna glances at me from the corner of her eye, "I knew him, Troy. He was a good man, even taught me a few tricks for fighting when I was young."

Her voice is smooth, like silk almost. A strange feeling prickles in my gut, but it feels… right, almost. I wouldn't say it's a bad feeling, but for some reason I feel a little nauseous.

"He was a good man and an excellent warrior, it's just a shame no one other then his fellow gladiators would treat him like a human. Most of the legion found it better to mock him for his father's failure. Ironic seeing as how none of them were old enough to remember what that failure was."

"If I may ask, what was that failure then? I heard his father lost a bunch of men and that costed him his honor and even the potential position of praetor."

"I don't know the details, I wasn't here when the tragedy happened, but the Praetor before me told me the story. Troy's father was once the most respected man here, he was gunning for position as the new Praetor and desired for more credibility by showing his leadership. He decided to search for a lost weapons cache, old siege equipment that we had ordered some years ago. I'm not sure who built them, but apparently they were being shipped to Camp Jupiter and the convoy was raided. Monsters and bandits stole the siege weapons and made off with them, and Troy's father wanted to reacquire them. He took his cohort and began marching, hunting down the monster encampments and strongholds he believed held them. According to my predecessor he was very successful at first, having managed to find several lost weapons and destroy nearly half a dozen monster nest. He was becoming prideful, maybe even greedy. He looted a great amount of gold and sent it back to Camp Jupiter, some say even buying the favor of some influential individuals. But it all came crashing down on him in the end. Troy's father was marching across an open plain when tragedy finally struck, a monster army said to be even larger then many during the war with Gaea. The clans of monsters banded together in fear of Troy's father and met him on an open field, being outnumbered the cohort lost nearly all members and he had to flee with only a handful of troops back to camp, losing all of his plunder and therefore all of his honor. And the rest is as you know, his family line ended with Troy and now only that absolution is bringing back a small amount of honor to his family name."

"That's… quite a story. I knew he lost troops, just didn't know it was _that_ bad. A Cohort lost is no simple thing when it accounts for one fifth of the entire legion. Thank you, Reyna, and… I'm sorry, I don't know how close you two were, but he seems to have had an effect."

Her lips pull into a small ghost of a smile. That odd feeling is back, and my face seems warm. Is it the fire, the scent of burning human?

"He was certainly a part of my life, he reminded me of my sister actually. He was strong like her, courageous too."

"Is she…"

"Dead? No, not at all. We've just… drifted apart is all. Listen, I just wanted to thank you for trusting me. I know it isn't easy throwing your faith at a stranger, but I really appreciate what you're doing for me."

I jolt lightly as I feel her put her hand on my leg, a rush of anxiety flows through my as my eyes widen like saucers. Reyna has turned her head and is looking at me, her dark eyes and smile melting my heart and making that tired feeling in my body slowly drift away. I feel… great! Like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders!

She slowly leans forward until our faces are only inches apart. Something feral is gnawing inside if me right now, an old voice saying that this is wrong. That I shouldn't be doing this, but I ignore it. Call me greedy, but I _want_ this!

Our lips connect, and electricity flows through me. We don't go beyond simple kissing, but I think we're fine with that. We spend the rest of the night talking and enjoying one another's company, properly bonding now that we've kissed. Apparently Reyna has looked up to 'The Mystic' for a long time. She tells me that in Rome I'm something like a folk hero, a figure young demigods hear about and fantasize over. Most grow out of it, believing me to just be a fairy tale. But she's a Praetor and has access to knowledge, such knowledge like a fairy tale being true. Call it odd and rushed, but maybe giving into our hormones is fine?

I doubt either of us have felt this relaxed in a while, so why not let ourselves be happy and have what we want? Maybe… maybe this is right? Mori is… I just don't know anymore.

Reyna and I have a long discussion about my wife, her being rightfully angry about kissing a married man but otherwise listening in to my worries and fears. My fears of Mori being too far gone and no longer worth loving. She killed her best friend for Athena's sake! My best friend! And so many others have suffered and died as a result of her actions!

My newfound friend listens in carefully as I bawl, sobbing my fears into my hands as her gentle hand is on my back. By then end of my tale I feel lighter actually, just sharing my story with someone I trust helping alleviate the stress and anxiety in my mind.

The night continues on and Reyna and I find ourselves with a newfound connection for one another. Two hurting individuals finding comfort within the other's embrace. Despite me being 'married', both of us are fine with continuing our make-out session.

This is okay, right? I mean, all we're doing is helping each other out really. Still, why is there a nauseous feeling inside me?

* * *

"LORDS AND LADIES, WELCOME TO THE ARENA! WE'VE GOT ANOTHER ADVANCEMENT MATCH TODAY, THE WINNER SHALL RISE THE RANKS AND BECOME A HERO OF THE ARENA! CITIZENS OF THE LEGION, I GIVE YOU THE FAMED CENTURION OF THE FORTH COHORT, THE ROUGH AND TOUGH LADY WHO FOUGHT FOR OUR HONOR IN THE WAR! RISE NOW AND HONOR THE DAUGHTER OF CERES LLLLLLLLEILA!"

The crowd rises from their seats and cheer with a viciousness you find in the most devoted football fans. The cage on the opposite end opens up and 'Leila' struts out, holding a golden gladius high with a big grin on her face. Compared to 'The Hammer' she actually seems kind of nice. Maybe I'll talk with her after this, she seems like a good friend.

Besides a golden gladius she's donned in standard Roman officer armor. Slightly more decorated polished steel helm, chest and leg armor with more leather then metal and no other discernable weapons. Overall, not very impressive looking.

But I'm not fool. Never underestimate a demigod, especially one born from the children of Kronos. They're strong warriors and cunning tacticians, combine that with powers surpassing anything a minor god demigod has and you have a dangerous warrior none should ever think lightly of.

So she's a daughter of Ceres? That means she's equivalent to a Demeter demigod, which further translates into her having control over plants. There are no plants in the combat arena, but that doesn't mean she can't just make them grow. Percy could summon water from nothing, so I imagine she likely can do the same.

Her gear is light and not as armored as most, so that means she relies on speed and agility over strength. Her shield is like a standard Roman one, but the material is made of a light weight alloy rather than steel. So she's speed and agility over anything else?

This fight should be easier for me, while not the quickest I can handle a quick enemy better than a tanky one. Now what weapon should I be using against her? My cane lacks a cross guard but has it's whip form, but her gladius is that, a sword.

If I parry then there's a good chance she can bring the sword down and cut my fingers. That means I need to use my backup weapon. I collapse my cane and hook it onto my belt and feel at the silvering on my finger.

Annabeth took Mori's sword ring from her when she was in her base and gave it to me before I left. I haven't used it much since I feel guilty, but right now that's not an emotion I need to be worried about!

I rub the ring and it turns into a long silver cutlass, the word 'Razor' engraved beautifully along the blade. A rush of fond memories go through me and I think back to better times when things were simple.

I'm pulled from my memories as my cage opens up, looks like I totally missed what the announcer was saying. Whoops!

I strut out into the arena to the roars of the crowd, I'm donned in my full gear ready for the fight. Leila smiles sweetly at me as we stand some thirty yards away from another. Even though she's smiling I can tell her eyes are scanning me like a hawk, searching for any and every weakness.

Oh she's good.

The announcers begins the fight, and slowly we circle around one another as we approach. Both of us have our shields up and scan over the others form and stance, using the brief moment to try and understand our respective opponents better.

I narrow my eyes at her as I see her bright brown eyes widen and sparkle in joy. Fuck, what's she found out? Is she planning something?

Our dance of circling predators comes to a stop as she quickly angles her unpainted shield into the sky and suddenly I'm blinded by a bright light! Fuck, she's using the reflection of the sun!

I quickly swipe my sword out on instinct, hoping to force her away if she happens to be charging. My cutlass connects with nothing, but I feel a sting in my leg and hiss in pain. I lash out with a kick and hear an 'oof' as Leila is thrown away.

My vision clears up and I look down and see a good cut in my leg, she blinded me and went around and slashed at my leg while I couldn't see! So she's a planner too? Well, guess I have to think this fight through!

Leila is back on her feet again, shield up high as she grins at me in joy. I narrow my gaze and put my sword behind my head into the 'wrath' position with my shield extended out. It's a form that leaves my legs open while guarding my body, but that's just what I want. I can potentially bait her into a trap if she tries to go for my legs!

Her eyes narrow in suspicion and she quickly jogs up to me, slashing and stabbing at my chest and shield instead of my legs. Her strikes are quick and hard, each blow rattling my shield arm and making it go numb.

I grit my teeth and continue blocking, using her assault to try and find a weakness in her stance. Problem is, there isn't really one! She's totally earned her position as a Centurion, her skill and strength is far beyond what I thought she could do!

Quickly I throw her sword back with my shield and lash out with my cutlass, going low and forcing her to try and block with her oversized shield. She grits her teeth and goes to stab me, but I use the superior reach of my cutlass and force her to defend again with her shield.

The key to beating her is keeping her at a distance, close quarters with her sword and I'm in trouble! My only recourse is that I have a small shield that makes it easier to counter in close quarters. Still, her skill with her sword is far better than mine is with blocking, one slipup and she could go for my chest with ease.

Slowly I make my strikes more aggressive, forcing her backwards and trying to use my strength to keep her at a disadvantage. I go for a heavy horizontal slash when suddenly her shield bashes out with a surprising amount of strength and knocks my shield away. Her gladius shines and goes to stab my sternum, so I bring my shield around and block the blow, her sword banging loudly from the heavy impact.

Unfortunately her sword was only a trick! With my shield up and my sword out in close proximity like this, it gives her perfect reach of her legs. Her leg that she uses to kick up in an arc and bash me right in my godsdamn balls!

I cough out in surprise and start gagging as she gives me another good hard kick! The crowd winces at my unfortunate luck, all the men in the stadium inhaling sharply and covering their crotches with their hands.

Leila goes for another kick, but I block with a cut of my sword. I don't hit flesh, but my sword does make good work and leaves a nasty opening in her leather coverings.

Being the petty little shit that I am, I quickly bring my knee upwards and crash into her crotch as revenge. She coughs out loudly and throws herself away from me, backpedaling several feet and spitting a glob of spit onto the floor.

My stomach lurches and a small puddle of vomit escapes my lip, the nasty and foul liquid smelling like chemicals and singing my nose. Leila and I grimace and wisely move away from my puke.

Leila inhales deeply and rolls her shoulders, doing a few loose exercises as I raise a curious eyebrow.

"Bit late for stretches isn't it? I mean, we _are_ fighting right now!"

She rolls her eyes dismissively and cracks her back, "There's never not a time for some stretching! Good for your body to do it often. Besides, it's a good time to talk. Name's Leila, Centurion of the fourth cohort!"

"Well… I'm Samson, master enchanter. If you don't mind me asking, but why fight? I think a Centurion is plenty honorable."

"Oh it certainly is… if people don't laugh at your cohort that is! Now that the fifth is all famous and crap that means mine is on the bottom! So I'm showing everyone how strong we are by beating the _crap_ out of some arrogant boys in the Colosseum!"

"That's certainly a way to do it. Well, I hope you've done enough. After all… _you're going to lose here."_

Her face darkens in the shadows of her helmet and her eyes narrow into dangerous dots, _"The come and have a go if you think you're strong enough!"_

And then she's on me in the blink of an eye, her sword flurrying out like a hurricane! She strikes to the right, I parry to the left. I strike high, she counters low. Our duel is like a dance, elegant and graceful. The crowd murmurs in amazement, commenting on the refined battle taking place before their eyes.

Sweat drips down my face as block a stab and follow up with one of my own, gods she's good! I haven't felt exhilarated like this in forever! Leila truly is a worthy opponent, but something feels amiss here. She's a powerful duelist, one of the best I've seen, but she's still holding back. She can strike quicker and hit harder, in know because she did it a little at the start, but she's choosing to save her energy for something else.

I go to step back away from a particularly dangerous horizontal swipe at my face when my eyes widen in fear. My foot, it won't move!

Her sword connects with my helmet, banging it loudly as the point of her sword cuts into the skin on my face as she drags it across the openings in my helmet. I hiss in pain and point my hand out, a telekinetic blast knocking her away from me and throwing her several yards back.

Golden blood leaks down from the cuts beneath my eyes as I look down and see that a small vine has wrapped around my leg and is holding me firmly in place. I cut the bastard with my sword and notice little white dots speckling the floor all around my feet. What… what the fuck are those?

Suddenly realization hits me, they're seeds! Thousands upon thousands of plant seeds! Green stems quickly start growing from the dots, plant matter molding and forming into tendril like whips that strike out and snap at my shield.

I hiss and cut away the plants to no avail, they just keep growing! More and more plants grow, some reaching as much as seven feet as the dirty floor turns into a lush and dangerous magical jungle!

More plants snap at me and try and tangle up my feet, so I cut them down and backtrack to the edge of their reach and watch as Leila grins at me like a fox, safely and leisurely resting in a plant shaped hammock as her vines slowly grow and start extending towards me.

"Ha! See me now Rome! The Fourth Cohort is powerful! Read it and weep ass holes, Leila is taking home the trophy today! Gods I can't believe you fell for that, idiot! All I had to do was throw some seeds around and bam! Instant plant army just waiting for the signal! Did you think a Child of Ceres couldn't make plants grow even in dead soil like this?!"

"To be honest, no one _really_ expects anything from a demigod who gardens!"

Her face flushes red and she extends her hand outwards, _"Oh yeah?! Then eat plant jackass!"_

Suddenly her vines lash out, slamming into the ground hard as I run away from the green tendril. Fucking Hades, she's strong! Really, _really_ strong!

Guess I have not choice now, I need to use the fire! I twist the handle of Razor and watch as cherry red fire dances along the sword, the crowd ooing in amazement as I show them more of my magic powers.

Leila hisses in fury as I swipe a horizontal line across the arena, a line of fire throwing out in an arc and burning much of her plants to crispy bits.

"How dare you touch my precious plants," She stands from her plant throne and throws her arms out dramatically, causing much of the plants to grow and expand rapidly, "See if you can handle _this?!"_

Like a machine gun, dozens of the plant tendrils slam out at me, shaking the walls and floor upon impact as I barely roll away and dodge them. Like a Hydra the more plants I cut down the more take their place, only my fire can't burn quickly enough to completely stop them!

The plants that I do light on fire are quickly covered by any surrounding them, smothering the fire until it loses oxygen and burns no longer!

I curse under my breath and extend my hand out, shooting a jet of fire at the advancing plants and slowing their growth towards my position down. Dammit, how can I beat this many plants?! If I used more of my magic then I might have a chance, but I need to hold off on my advanced spells as long as I can! I can only beat Lanius is he doesn't know my full capabilities!

Fuck! I have no choice now do I?!

My shield on my arm turns back into metal band on my sleeve as I need at least one hand open to cast my spells more effectively.

I do a fancy hand gesture and throw my arm out, my hand unleashing green energy that turns into a liquid that rinses over the plant. Nothing happens at first, but Leila's eyes widen as her plants start smoking and wilting, their lush green stems turning an ugly brown that wilts into nothing but husks on the floor.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY BABIES?!"

I smirk at her to piss her off, physiological manipulation to make her erratic and lose composure as well as her ability to plan rationally.

"It's a spell I learned from an old witch that won't leave my house. It's called 'Acid Arrow', and it conjures acid and throws it out like a glob. And since your plants are soaking up any water at an accelerated rate, they ate up my acid and poisoned themselves with it! You're good, but witchcraft has always held an advantage over nature!"

She screams a roar of rage and clutches at her head, "You'll pay for that monster! Come my children, join me and show this asshole how powerful nature is!"

Leila raves at me like a woman gone mad as all of her plants, even the wilted ones, withdraw backwards and start wrapping around her body. Suddenly more plants burst from the ground and join the mass growing around Leila!

In a matter of moments, a huge hulking plant form has wrapped around her, the thing taking the vague form of a giant human plant thing. Gods it's huge! It must be fifteen feet tall at the least!

" **THINK YOU CAN STILL WIN BOY?! I'LL CRUSH YOU FOR KILLING MY BABIES!"**

A deep and guttural voice sounds out from the headless mass as it charges at me! My eyes widen comically and I duck between the legs as it smashes into the wall, crushing a good portion of it as the audience in that section cries out in a mix of excitement and fear.

The plant monster grabs a chunk of rick and hurtles it at me, I quickly use my telekinesis and change it's trajectory. Plant Leila growls deeply and drives it's stumpy hand into the ground, fissures burst along the floor as tendrils erupt from my feet and wrap around my legs. I cry out as I'm lifted off of my feet and high into the air, quickly I'm brought back down onto the ground with a heavy smash!

The air is thrown form my lungs, and before I can do anything else the tendrils whip around and throw me high into the stands. I smash into a little girl, she shrieks in joy as she grabs my hair and yells 'Mom! I touched him!"

I swat her little hand away and groan as I stand up. The plant monster looks up at me and starts climbing the walls up into the stands. The audience quickly shuffles away from me, 'oh shit!' expressions written all over their faces!

Leila's plant suit monster thing pulls itself up into the stands and leers at me. I gulp once and quickly jump away as it smashes the stands where I once was. Quickly I keep running as the she continues smashing away at me. I throw my hand back and launch another Acid Arrow at her, the plant things bellows out in pain and holds itself back as it regrows the dead plants.

I look up at the king's box and yell and see Reyna watching me with a shit eating grin on her face, "REYNA! IS THIS LEGAL?! WHAT THE HADES DUDE?!"

She just shrugs as the Gargarean king next to her chuckles, "Not sure what I'm supposed to do, she's your opponent. Should be legal, the rules never said anything about fights having to _actually_ be in the arena. One time these two actually ended up fighting outside, that was intense!"

I shriek and barely dodge getting clubbed by the plant monster, causing Reyna and the king to literally laugh out loud.

Fire dances across my sword and a fireball launches off it and smashes into the plant beast, "For fuck's sake Leila I'm sorry okay! You're literally destroying the arena right now!"

" **I DON'T CARE! YOU WILL DIE FOR HURTING MY PRECIOUS PLANTS!"**

"Gods and I thought _I_ was the hippie!"

She brings another fist down and I barely dodge from it again. Alright, I need to end this! Question is how? Leila seems like she's lost control, perhaps her powers have gotten out of hand? Like a self-brainwashing thing?

That's the key! I need to get Leila out of her plant monster!

Oh fuck me, this is going to hurt isn't it?

She brings another club fist down, destroying the stone bleachers beneath my feet, and I dodge back but quickly jump forward and grab onto the fist as she brings it up in the air. Her other stub hand comes around to me smack me and I quickly throw my hand out and launch a ball of fire at it.

The arm quickly catches alight and spreads across the entire arm as she groans out in fear and rage. I use her distraction to jump from the arm and latch onto the chest where I think Leila would be at. I start cutting into the tendril body, but the cut plants wrap around my arms and start pulling me into the body itself.

I bite my lip in pain as they squeeze my body _hard,_ my bones creaking from the pain but I ignore it and force myself forward, desperately feeling around for Leila somewhere in the plant body.

My vision goes dark as the plants wrap around my neck and face, I start choking as the squeeze my neck and draw me further inward. I can feel tears in my eyes, but my hand suddenly connects with something!

I feel it grab mine and squeeze tightly. It's the _real_ Leila! I gently squeeze her hand back for reassurance and close my eyes, praying I don't accidentally kill Leila with what I'm about to do.

Fire burns in my free hand, and the plants scream out in pain as they light up like the sun on the earth.

* * *

I blink my bleary eyes as my foggy vision comes to. I pull myself up into a sitting position and look around at where I'm at. I'm back in the arena battlegrounds and burning piles of plant matter are littered _everywhere._

I cover my nose from the stench and stand up on wobbly legs. Adrenaline suddenly hits me as I realize that I can't see Leila anywhere! I race over to the biggest pile of burning plants and start clawing through it, hoping desperately she's safe!

Leila's face emerges from the mass, thankfully unburned, and she blinks her bright brown eyes in confusion.

"Holy shit, I am _never_ doing that again! Thanks for the assist bro, but I'm just gonna take a nap right quick!"

She laughs stupidly for a second before going limp in my arms and snoring soundly. I sigh in relief and pull her completely free of those stupid plants.

I look up at the sky box and Reyna nods impressed and looks out at the stunned crowd. Their wide eyes look at me in shock for a moment before they all jump up and roar in excitement!

"BY JUPITER HE'S DONE IT! ALL HAIL THE VICTOR! ALL HAIL OUR NEW HERO! VICTORIOUS HERO RETURN TO THE BLOOWORKS NOW AND REST! YOU'VE EARNED IT!"

Gods fucking right I've earned it!


	49. Chapter 49

**A/N: Oh boy, Reyna's pulling moves on Samson… and he isn't stopping her! What does this mean for him and Mori? Well, you'll just have to wait and find out. Last chapter Samson had a hard time fighting Leila, granted she freaked out and went plant hulk on him. Now who's the next challenger for dear Samson? We've already heard about them, so get ready for the toughest fight yet!**

* * *

 _With Reyna, spring 2011_

"Our decision is final, _Praetor,_ so listen and obey the will of the Senate!"

"Trust me, I've listened, well over an hour now too! So please listen to _me_ and call off this stupid decision! Pulling a stunt like this won't sit over well with the people, they'll call for your heads if you do! The crowd loves The Mystic, _Rome_ loves The Mystic, they'll know this comes from the Senate and freak out! By the end of the week we could have a full-blown riot on our hands!"

The Senators all scoff and lean back casually as I continue arguing against them to no avail. Prideful little shrews, heads so far up their asses they look more like an ouroboros then prissy and arrogant politicians!

Well… thankfully not Hazel, she's actually the only one saying I'm right and we shouldn't try and rig the tournament in our favor. Frank, the Canadian Baby man, unfortunately is on the opposing side, the side with the most votes for the stupid decision.

"Frank," Hazel scolds, pointing a finger at him as he tries to avoid her glare, "I can't believe you agree with this! We're going to look like scheming tyrants to everyone when they find out! We need allies and trust, not acquaintances that won't ever help us out!"

Frank huffs and returns Hazel's glare with a hard look of his own, "I'm sorry Hazel, but _Larry_ is right. We must be strong if we're going to be respected. If The Mystic continues forward we'll lose that respect, we're already a laughing stock after Leila lost control and fought in the stands!"

The other Senators siding with _Larry_ and Frank murmur in agreement much to Hazel's and mine chagrin.

"What happened yesterday was a freak accident, everyone knows a demigod can lose control sometimes. They all chalk it up to it just being a random demigod that went a little crazy, no one cares if she was a Centurion! If anything it's made us more popular! The Fourth Cohort has received an influx of recruits, support for the Legion is at an all-time high!"

"Enough Praetor Reyna!" _Larry_ yells out from his seat, "We're sending our best warrior to defeat the Graecus and that's final! Jason's former protector has served us well and he'll do it again by banishing that wannabe sorcerer back to Camp Half Blood!"

Hazel slams her fist onto the seat and the whole building shakes lightly.

"Hazel," Frank warns, but he backs off when her piercing gold eyes meet his, shutting him up instantly.

"You're nothing but a band of fools. This is our _one_ chance to give us a good reputation and you're shamelessly throwing it away for no good reason! What were some of them again? Honor? _Blood Purity?_ We're going to become isolated again, and when monsters are breaking down our door and we receive no help from our neighbors… then you'll understand why Old Rome fell!"

The other Senators start bickering wildly like chickens, I sigh despondently and look up at Hazel. We lock eyes are her steely gaze softens, as if she's saying 'sorry'. I hold a hand up to her and ensure I'm not mad, rather that I'm thankfully for her support.

I motion her to follow me with my head and she nods. I take a glance at Frank, but he doesn't look at me, instead choosing to glare at his seat instead of facing me.

The Senate devolves into a mess of bickering teens, so Hazel and I just slip out of the room and find a secluded corner elsewhere in the building so we can talk amongst ourselves. I had asked Peter to meet me here once he heard the Senate screaming, so he should be here momentarily.

Hazel growls in frustration and tugs at her curly auburn hair. I wince as I hear it tear, followed by Hazel's soft voice deadpanning 'ow'.

"Listen Hazel, I appreciate it, but don't go bald because you're stressed. Almost all meetings end like this, it won't ever change. You just have to deal with it."

"That's just it!" She yells, causing the building to shake again. I give her a hard look and she mutters an apology, "We're supposed to discuss things, that's why there's a council in the first place. Instead they just argue and argue, following a single person's word until it's all toppling down on top of them! We're in a hard spot Reyna, if only Frank had joined us, two Praetor's agreeing could've helped overturn the council's decision!"

"Yes, it certainly would've, but that's not what happened. Frank will come around, just give it a moment. He's new and inexperienced, he hasn't learned that the Senate only does what's in their best interests yet. For now we just have to keep teaching him the right way of things."

"I just… Gods all this stuff is tiring, what ever happened to the days when things were simple and we were heroes?"

I shake my head sadly, "We had a common enemy back then, group think is a powerful unification tool. It's how Octavian took command, he used fear and a sacrificial lamb to grant himself false power. _Larry_ was always Octavian's biggest supporter, he's probably following in his footsteps like a lost little duckling. What worries me if he's planning to try and announce himself as Pontifex Maximus or something."

" _Larry's_ like Octavian, but he lacks the same strive as our old augur. Dude wouldn't last a _minute_ in a seat of real power."

We spin around and see Peter Sane, Son of Aeolus and body guard of Jason Grace (when he's _actually_ in Camp Jupiter) leaning casually against a pillar. He's in his regular clothes, so the vast number of scars on his arms is open for all to see.

His huge height has always been one of his most drawing features, he sometimes feels just a hair shorter then a cyclops! While impressive looking, his skill as a swordsman is what truly makes him feared. He's earned his place well as one of the best fighters in camp, behind only a few in terms of strength and skill, Lanius being among those numbers.

Which is why the Senate is forcing him to fight, against the rules I must remind everyone, and act as a surprise challenger and last-ditch effort to try and get Samson disqualified from the visitor's tournament so he's forced to travel back home.

"Good, you're here. You should know what's happened by now, correct?"

"But of course, half of Camp probably knows with how loud the pigs are screaming!"

I raise an eyebrow, "Pigs, Peter? What have I told you, we _don't_ call our Senators pigs! They're closer to cockroaches and mules considering how stubborn they are."

He chuckles and walks over to us, casually leaning against the wall besides us as he gives me a goofy grin. He almost reminds me of Percy with that smile, but I've known him long enough to know what it truly means.

Peter's worried, greatly so. He's always been loyal to me, so much so that he'd burn Rome down if I asked. So if I'm worried about the Senate trying to sabotage my tournament, then he is too.

"What's the plan then, Reyna? You've got a lot riding on his victory, surely you have something planned? You are a Praetor after all, there's no way you'd take this kind of thing lying down!"

I smirk at him, and his eyes twinkle in delight, "But of course, I am _Reyna_ after all. For all the scheming and planning of _Larry,_ he still doesn't understand loyalty. He's going to force you to fight, but he can't force you to _win._ "

Hazel snaps her fingers and gives me a coy smile, "Goodness, is the Senate really that stupid? Peter's forced to fight, but he's loyal to you above all else. Just say the words and he'll throw the fight without a second thought. Isn't that right, Peter?"

"That's right, I'm Reyna's good little doggie, not the lacky of those freakin' robes in there. Say the words and I'll throw the match after a good fight, I'll make it look good so they're satisfied and won't get suspicious."

I look away, through the pillars holding the roof up and out the window overlooking the entirety of New Rome. I'm fully aware of how absolutely melodramatic this is, but gods just imagine the _scene_ if this was a movie!

A quiet scheming leader standing in the shadows, her subordinates waiting for their orders, a completely oblivious Senate, that's a fucking Oscar right there!

"Peter, fight well and lose that damn match!"

He smiles and does a mocking bow, eyes flashing with a tinge of insanity to them, "As you command, _Warhead."_

* * *

 _With Samson_

Yesterday night was… interesting, so to speak. I'm still unsure about…about what I should do. I'm married to Mori yet… it's feeling fleeting almost, like I've lost my ability to lover her anymore. A sick feeling builds inside of my gut and it makes me want to hurl.

After all these years and all these hardships, is this how we're going to end? Slowly drifting apart as Mori grows insane and continues to hurt all those who are close to me?

Max is dead, Annabeth was assaulted and violated by Mori's magic, generations of demigods have gone without proper resources, so many people have suffered and died by her hands and she hasn't shown an ounce of remorse.

I know she's technically being influenced by some unknown Titan, but that still hasn't changed the fact that her actions have all been her own. The Titan didn't force her to kill Max, it just told her to do it

 _And she listened._

Maybe… maybe it's better if we just end things, I can't find the will to love Mori anymore.

Then what does that mean for Reyna and myself? Fuck man, things are complicated. Gods why is my stomach acting so weird today?!

I sigh and push myself off of my bunk, waking Horse up from his little nap and walking over to one of the dining tables and plopping down in a chair. A service maid drops off a pint of ale and I start drinking the weak beverage up.

I'm not sure how long I sip on my drink, but eventually I feel the table rumble as someone throws themselves into the seat across from me. I rub my bleary eyes and look at my visitor.

The first thing I feel is an aura of power around her, two actually. One feels calm, like a pond or something, but the other is far more powerful and potent to the point that the other aura seems completely drowned out.

The second aura is like that of a thunderstorm, fierce and powerful that hits like a truck and has the same serenity as a godsdamn tornado.

Her eyes are blue, like electricity was made physical, and her hair is spikey like someone rubbed a balloon in it or something. She has an air about her, definitely arrogant considering that self-assured smile of hers, but still is somehow inviting.

I swear it's like Zeus was turned into a teenage girl or something with a punk aesthetic.

"Sup nerd, how's it hanging?" Oh gods, she's a total punk rocker, "Heard you're pretty popular around here. Sorry I haven't introduced myself yet, been busy and other crappy excuses like that! Call me Thalia, Hunter of Artemis at your service!"

"A Hunter? Haven't met one of your kind in a while, last one went AWOL and tried to kill me actually. How's Artemis been, haven't talked with her in forever?"

She blinks her eyes a few times, clearly confused by my history with her mistress, " _You_ talk with my lady? Sure you aren't a girl in drag or something?... Actually you kind of do look like a girl…"

I give her a small glare and she laughs and leans back in her chair, "Kidding, just kidding! Well… not really, you _do_ look like a girl!"

My glare intensifies and she rolls her eyes and waves a hand dismissively, "Whatev's dude, just chill! I'm just here for a chat, we're next up for the advancement match and I'm curious about you. I've heard some rumors about you being some kind of crazy wizard, and with that match yesterday I believe it! Man that girl was _crazy_ , totally lost her cool! That plant mech thing was pretty cool, wonder if I can do something similar with electricity?"

"Electricity? You'd probably fry yourself before making a stable spell that won't turn you into ash."

"Meh, I'm not worried about it. Tell me more about yourself, you're becoming something of a legend around here and I'm actually curious about you."

I shrug and finish off my ale with a big gulp, "Not much to tell. Just your average legendary enchanter who happens to be pretty good with a sword and magic."

"Battle Mage class huh? Now that's always fun! Blowing shit up with magic and cutting monsters up with a sword!"

"Uh… what's a Battle Mage? And why is it a class?"

"Never played an RPG have you? You've gotta play this game my friend showed me, it's called Oblivion and you will totally lose your mind playing it!"

I groan and run a hand through my hair, "Gods more of these 'video games', and I thought that weird Nintendo thing Percy bought was crazy!"

"You know Percy," Thalia says, sitting up straighter in her seat, "He's my cousin actually! Wait… are you Samson? He told me about you, something about immortality and a quest to save the camp?"

"Right," I say sighing slightly depressed. Of course Percy can't keep his trap shut about my immortality! I guess it doesn't really matter since Zeus know I'm fighting Mori on his behalf.

"It wasn't really a big quest, just reversing a curse those Hephaestus campers cast upon themselves. We just had to go to some places and reacquire some things I made a while ago, only all three together can undo a curse like that."

"Hah, never a dull day at Half Blood is it?! Well, it was nice meeting with you, I can honestly say I think we should be friends after this seeing as we're two immortals after all? See ya' around owl eyes."

Thalia gets up from my table and leaves the room, no doubt heading towards her assigned platform for our fight in the next couple hours. I lean back in my chair and relax for a moment, thinking back to the impression Thalia left in me.

She seems… well she seems just plain honest. She was curious about me because of my reputation, not some plan to try and lever information out of me for personal or godly benefit. Honestly, I was sort of charmed. Not in a romantic way mind you, only as a friendship sort of thing.

Though she never did tell me why she's fighting in the Colosseum in the first place. Maybe Artemis sent her here to advertise the strength of the Hunt? Or maybe she's even here by herself just to test her strength? Probably the later based on her personality.

Having an immortal friend sounds like a really amazing thing seeing as how I'll be around forever now. So a good friend that can last as long as me is honestly a gift in of its self. Good friends help stave off madness, and Thalia seems like a good friend.

Now who the hell is her godly parent?!

* * *

The day had passed into the next, and just as she said, Thalia is now my next competitor to advance. The other ranks took a great deal of victories to be eligible for advancement but being ranked as 'Hero' comes with the benefit to vie for advancement immediately.

Most see it unwise to try and do an advancement almost immediately after the next, but I don't have time to spare right now. After I beat Thalia, I can fight Lanius almost immediately after. I'm one step closer to avenging Troy!

My platform rises up to the battle arena, the whole trip seemingly slower then it's ever been before. I wonder if it's done or purpose? Give the challenger time to prepare themselves for advancement to 'Champion' rank? Or more likely Leila damaged the mechanism when she went on her plant rage.

My platform jolts violently and falls for a couple feet before the mechanism catches the wire again and starts raising the platform.

Yup, she broke it!

The lift levels off and I quickly jump onto solid ground. The crowd is almost deafening today, likely the announcer has gotten them excited about the match today.

"WELCOME, WELCOME CITIZEN'S OF THE EMPIRE, TO THE ARENA! WE HAVE AN ADVANCEMENT MATCH LIKE NO OTHER TODAY! TWO LEGENDARY GREEKS FACE OFF AGAINST ONE ANOTHER TODAY FOR THE HONOR OF BECOMING OUR NEXT ARENA CHAMPION! IN HONOR OF HIS RECENT VICTORIES, IT DOES ME GREAT PLEASURE TO ANOUNCE OUR FIRST CONTENDOR! LORDS AND LADIES, I GIVE YOU ROME'S NEWEST FAVORITE GLADIATOR… TTTTTTHE MMMMMYSTIC!"

I'm forced to cover my ears as the audience screams, shrieks and hollers in excitement. Gods they can probably hear that all the way over in Camp Half Blood!

My gate opens, and I march out into the field of battle, holding Mori's flaming cutlass high as the crowd cheers my name on. A few flashy moves and needless display of pyrotechnics really gets their gears going, the crowd screams my name louder and I swear the floor even vibrates from the sound alone.

"AND IN THE OPPOSITE CORNER, WE HAVE ANOTHER GREEK VISITOR! WHILE HER NAME MAY BE UNKOWN, HER STRENGTH AND LEGACY MORE THEN MAKE UP FOR IT! LORDS AND LADIES, IT GOVES ME GREAT HONOR TO ANNOUNCE THALIA! DAUGHTER OF ZEUS!"

My eyes widen as Thalia's gate lowers, said _Daughter of Zeus_ trekking out with a wicked looking spear and shield, electricity faintly dancing along her shoulders as she gives the crowd a big and prideful grin.

She twirls her spear around like a baton, and I can't keep my jaw from falling open as it spins around so fast I almost can't even see it! She thrusts it in the air showy a few times, lightning crackling out of it like a Tesla Coil and lighting the Colosseum up with bright baby blue light.

The crowd cheers her on as she shows off her impressive powers, applauding the daughter of their most supreme god essentially. Well, I guess not really, but she's the daughter of his other half so that must be enough.

I gulp nervously and consider my possible plan of action. She's a lightning user, and likely the most powerful one besides a god I'll ever face. When it comes to handling electrical damage, I'm very limited.

Juggernaut and Razor don't conduct electricity, so I don't have to worry about that, but that still doesn't mean the rest of myself is immune either. I only have an immunity to fire, so she's already got the advantage over me. Her skills with a spear just by watching her show off to the crowd is also nothing to scoff at, and that shield of hers is also a huge advantage to her as well. It's large, like a Spartan shield, so she can hide herself fully behind it.

Damn, once again I'm forced to dip into my advanced spells! There's only one spell I can cast that will give me a resistance to the effects of her powers, and it's not a spell I use lightly.

Magic Armor, a force field to science fiction nerds, will cover my body and allow me to take blows like steel armor without being weighed down, but it also eats up a large chunk of my mana reserves. I'll be limited to lower tier spells if I use it, but I still have one last item besides my magic that can help me!

My Ghisi shield still has the spell I enchanted it with, a magic shield essentially that should reflect magical strikes away for a time before the spell breaks.

This gives me a good chance actually, forego advanced magic in exchange for Magic Armor and use my equipment to win rather then my powers. I can resist direct contact with her spear with my enhancement magic and hopefully repel any lightning bolts she creates with my shield.

Will this plan of mine succeed? I have no idea. But, it's all I have to go one, so might as well give it my all. I cast my Magic Armor spell and wince as I feel it eat up a large chunk of my mana.

I stretch myself a few times and get myself into my ready stance. Thalia spots me preparing and gives me a big toothy grin and readies herself as well, body arched low behind her shield with just enough room to see above the top. Her electrified spear is level with her hip and pointed out towards me, a perfect thrusting stance if I've ever seen one.

The battle is announced, and for a moment Thalia and I remain still, eyes hardened and prepared for a battle that will be remembered for years. The sound of the crowd goes silent to my ears, my focus on Thalia being so great even the ravings of a crowd with the strength of thousands is ignored.

And with the drop of a single band of sweat from my forehead, our battle of lightning and magic begins.

* * *

The ground shakes beneath my feet as I block an overhead jab from Thalia's spear, my arm tingles from the no doubt thousands of volts of electricity flowing through it, but my Magic Armor spell negates the effects to being nothing more then a slight tickle in my arm.

Thalia grits her teeth and kicks off of my shield and launches herself back. Her muscles tense as the electricity in her spear suddenly becomes even more erratic as it charges with so much power I almost start to feel nauseous.

Is this the strength of a Child of Zeus? Is their power so significant I almost feel sick just by sensing it? She truly is impressive, makes me wonder what Percy is _truly_ capable of. I've only felt a portion of his powers once, and just that tiny bit made me feel like Poseidon himself was staring me down.

It makes me wonder, how strong would he be if he didn't hold himself back all the time?

Enough about my sisters totally-not-husband, The Daughter of-no, _Thalia_ takes precedence right now!

The _thunder_ in her spear crackles violently as she thrusts her spear in my direction. Most wouldn't think much of it seeing as she's ten yards away from me, but I know that charging power like that doesn't have a need to be close.

I raise my shield up and conjure the shield as blinding blue light shines over my shield, the thunderbolt launched from the point of her spear being so loud the roar of the crowd sounds like an insignificant child before mighty Typhon.

Her thunder collides with my spell's enchantment with such a furious force my braced body is pushed backwards, my boots leaving deep grooves in the dirt as I'm forced back at least thirty feet!

But my shield's spell holds strong, completely reflecting the thunder and splitting it off into small streaks that crackle angrily against the dirt, burning so hot portions of it turn into glass.

I grit my teeth and pool my left over mana into the spell, keeping it held on long enough as Thalia's stream of thunder continues to crash down onto it. Finally, after the most grueling struggle of magic I've ever experienced, her attack fizzles down into nothing.

My spell disperses as I lower it and gaze out at Thalia, said Hunter panting fiercely as her toothy smile shines bright. She wipes some spit from her mouth and calls out to congratulate me.

"C-congrats! Never thought a boy could handle thunder like that! What the hell is up with that shield?! Never thought there was one that could do magic crap!"

I give her a grin of my own, "Like it? It's a specialty of mine, enchanting objects with great powers and abilities. I'm an enchanter, and people recognize it for a reason! Careful you don't underestimate me, wizards have ways of surprising even the most powerful foes."

"Hah! Dutifully noted, just keep your eyes open boy! Like you said, _don't underestimate me!"_

Her spear connects with my shield and I blanch from the sheer _speed!_ She crossed thirty feet in a blink of an eye I didn't even see it happen! I curse and start parrying her ironically lightening quick strikes. She's limited to thrusting attacks mostly, her spear being not good enough for swiping attacks and instead switching all of the power into thrusts that are so strong only top tier fighters can defend against them without a broken arm!

The tingling in my arm soon become unbearable from the amount of strike she's delivering, my Magic Armor only reducing the effects so much that repeated hits actually start to hurt.

I grit my teeth and push her spear away, going for a series of strong counter strikes in hopes of changing the dynamic of the fight and push Thalia on the defensive.

My plan works well, shield fighters work best on the attack and often have weaknesses when pushed on the defensive. Thalia is no different, only she handles defensive combat better than most spear fighters I've faced off against before. My flaming sword bounces off her gorgon decorated shield, not doing anything more then scratch the decals but It's still an improvement from before.

Suddenly her leg lashes out and crashes into my knee, forcing me into a half kneeling stance from the pain alone. I barely deflect a stab from her spear with my shield, but that leaves me completely defenseless as she bashes me in the face with her shield.

I'm thrown back several feet, my ears ringing as I collide with the hard dirt and roll several feet after that. Quickly I use the momentum of my roll to spin back to my feet, but still being daze I barely bring my shield up in time to block a center strike from her spear.

My vision starts to clear, yet I'm still foggy eyed so I have to use the blurry image in front of me and do my best to guess where Thalia is striking from next. I cry out as her unseen leg smashes into her gut, until to cough out again as she bashes me across the face with the pole of her spear.

I grit my teeth and quickly lash out with my sword, forcing her to back away as I nick her side with the point of my sword. She hisses angrily and feels her waist, a fresh line of red blood leaking from the shallow cut and staining her dark tank top.

Her eyes snap to me, lightening seeming to spark from her iris's, "You asshole! This was my favorite top!"

I gulp nervously as she leaps into the air with a roar, going impossibly high into the air and letting gravity bring her down with extra force behind her spear.

Quickly I roll backwards as she drives her spear into the ground, bringing my shield up as a dome of electricity bursts outwards and slams into the barrier spell. The force behind her blow is so strong I'm actually lifted off of the ground and thrown far backwards, slamming into the wall and cracking the hard stone on impact.

My Magic Armor survives the crash, but it only absorbs so much of the kinetic energy. My back aches and whines in pain, but the passive effects of Ram help by sending healing magic down and numbing the pain.

Steel clashing echoes into the stands as Thalia shows off her speed again and drives her spear into my shield. With my back pinned to the wall I'm forced into a disadvantage, desperately blocking her strike with my severely limited mobility.

I use the back and forth between us to try and think of a plan. She has me pinned almost literally, but I can still use it to my advantage!

Thalia lines up for a super-fast jab, so I duck underneath it. She gasps as her spear point crashes all the way into the stone and becomes stuck six inches deep!

My sword lashes out, bouncing off her shield but succeeding in my plan, Thalia jumps back but I don't give her a moments rest. Without her spear Thalia is left with only her shield, which means she's limited in her ability to counter.

She grits her teeth in frustration and continues her fighting retreat. Slowly her eyes start to shine, and mine widen as I feel a sudden surge of power erupting from her form. I push away from her and roll backwards, raising my shield and its power to maximum as blinding light flashes from her body like she was made of pure electricity!

My ears go deaf and I pinch my eyes shut, praying to my mother I survive this fight! And then darkness overtakes me.

* * *

I wake with a startled gasp, my body aching in absolute pain as I groan and try and stand up and make out my surroundings.

It takes me a moment, I even throw up a few times, but I rise on my wobbly legs and finally comprehend my surrounding. I'm in the fucking Fields of Mar's!

Holy shit, did she throw me _that_ far?! What the Hades Thalia?! We were supposed to keep it in the arena!

I look up into the sky and notice dark thunder clouds spinning high above, blue light flashing occasionally followed by deep rumbles like war-drums.

A heavy feeling crosses my skin, an aura of strength and ferocity seen only in the most powerful of individuals. Quickly I narrow my eyes and look over a small hill across from me, blue light shining from behind it as a being of pure strength comes into view from the top.

Thalia stands on a hill opposite from mine, her breath labored as she clutches the broken in half spear she used to kick my ass only moments ago.

She points her spear at me dramatically, a bright bolt of thunder flashing behind her and illuminating her features with sharp shadows for the length of its life.

"I-I'll give it to ya', you've genuinely impressed me! Never thought I'd be pushed this far. I've gotta admit, I'm on my last legs here and I can tell you are too. Let's give our all one last time, and show me some more of those powers you're famous for! Heck, I'll even give you a handicap and de-electrify my spear! That way you don't have to hide behind that spell you've been struggling with!"

She rolls her shoulders and does a come-hither gesture with her spear, _"Show me why I should respect you!"_

I sigh and disperse my Magic Armor spell, instantly a huge wave of energy rushes into my body, the magic in Ram using my mana and healing my aching body enough that I can fight respectively again.

"If you want it, then so be it! I'll show you why I'm not some second-rate sorcerer!"

Her eyes shine with excitement and she readies herself, electricity crackling off her body as she prepares for my next attack.

I think back into my list of magic spells, trying desperately to remember one that will give me the win here and now!

Then it clicks, the strongest offensive spell I know! Sunburst, an eighth level spell only gods and the highest tier magic users in the world can cast! Obviously I can't hit as hard as they can, but I have to give it my all! Use every ounce of mana I have and defeat Thalia in a single attack!

I crack my back and de-summon my shield and sword. Thalia raises an eyebrow at me and gives me an inquiring look.

"I've got a good spell in mind, I doubt I ever could overpower you at full strength with it, but perhaps with you so exhausted I just might be able to! Even now I probably couldn't beat you in sword combat, I really am on my last legs. Prepare yourself Thalia, I'm putting all of my strength into this one last attack! I suggest you find something to counter it!"

Her toothy grin extends and she throws her shield to the ground, "One final attack, huh? One last use of our powers? Gods, this is some Dragon Ball Z shit right here… I LOVE IT! Hope you've got the strength left, one the count of three I'm throwing the biggest lightning bolt at you I can!"

Warm yellow light begins covering my body, surrounding it like an aura of warmth and power.

"One!"

Thalia's body is covered in a field of crackling, violent electricity. Her eyes glow with fierce power and her spear begins to gather and become cover with lightening, giving it the impression of being made of pure thunder.

"Two!"

My ears ring, blood even leaks from them, but I ignore the deafening pain and allow myself to merge with the spell, turning my body into a conduit from which it will emerge.

Thalia's arm shakes violently, the thunderbolt in her grasp almost being too strong for her to hold. She grits her teeth and gives me a violent smirk, surety leaking off of her as the final number goes free from her lips.

"Three!"

Both of our attacks erupt simultaneously, a fierce stream of thunder flying from Thalia's spear as it collides with a ray of shining yellow light! Sunburst lives up to its reputation as being a top tier spell, the heavenly light halting Thalia's thunderbolt at a safe distance from me.

But it's not enough, slowly her thunder pushes my attack back. Inch by devastating inch she makes ground, the grass beneath our merged attack singing as intense heat burns the ground so much it turns into glass or material similar to it.

My legs begin to wobble, my stance slowly losing its grip as my strength leaves me as well. I can't tell how Thalia is handling, the clashing light being too strong to tell, but I can only hope she loses her endurance before I do!

And so our struggle continues, sunlight holding back a torrent of thunder more powerful then I've ever seen. Blood leaks from my mouth, my body beginning to tear itself apart from the sheer amount of power I'm forcing through my body. Thalia isn't likely to have this problem; her body naturally being designed to handle electricity.

I close my eyes and focus inward, trying my best to summon as much mana from within myself as possible. There's a straining in my gut, like a hot knife is twisting my insides!

Coughs and gasps escape my lip, my breathing becoming so heavy I can barely do it anymore!

 _Do not give in._

Wh-what? Who is that?!

 _Hold out for but a moment longer, you are so close to victory._

Mother… is that you? I don't- I don't think I can handle it! I'm… I'm going to lose…

I swear I can see her face smiling at me within my own mind. It lingers for a second before vanishing, but I find myself with a newfound strength.

All that I've done, all that I've lost, it all leads up to this very moment! _My_ Moment! I'm not going to lose, not here! It won't all be in vain, I won't let it! I will _win!_

Thalia's attack begins to lose strength, and slowly I push her thunder back, retaking lost ground and then some I never even owned. Every moment that passes I can feel her strength fading, each instant turning away from her favor.

Like the flick of a switch, Thalia's thunderbolt fazes into nothing and sizzles away. Instantly my light lurches forward, her eyes going wide in disbelief and acceptance. She closes her eyes and smiles, fully embracing the attack and defeat as something inevitable.

The world explodes into a blast of light, and I know that I had succeeded. I beat Thalia, I _beat_ the Daughter of Zeus!

I collapse onto my back, the cool grass tickling my skin as I giggle a couple times. Holy shit, that was _fucking_ crazy!

"Hey Thalia, you good?"

"…Heh… yeah, I'm good. Holy crap dude, you're a fuckin' wizard! Feel free to call yourself my friend, you've earned that right!"

"Cool, thanks dude! Not sure when they're gonna find us, but I'm pretty certain I won."

She snorts, "Hell yeah you won, I won't lie! Anyways… I think I'm gonna take a…"

Thalia starts snoring halfway into her sentence, guess she fell asleep? I wiggle myself a little and make myself comfortable, doing my best to melt into the grass.

A nap sounds good right about now!


	50. Chapter 50

**A/N: It's that time again, time for an end of a story arc. We'll be finishing up the Colosseum tournament today, ending the fights with one last huzzah. Should be loads of fun, and there's even a guest star showing up!**

* * *

 _With Samson, Spring 2011_

"And so I was like; No I can't make an apple tree grow oranges! Ha-ha, anyways he died pretty horribly afterwards. A cyclops threw a rock at him and took his head clean off! I still have nightmares to this day."

"Geez, sorry to here that sis. Have some more ganja, helps me with my anxiety."

"Don't mind if I do!"

Leila takes the blunt from me and takes a deep hit, coughing violently after a second but mellowing out a few moments later. She leans back in her seat and sighs deeply in content.

"Glad you showed me how to grow that stuff bro! I can't believe I never thought about it. I mean, I _am_ a Daughter of Ceres! What's this stuff called again?"

" _Ghost Train Haze,_ some pretty classic stuff," I take a hit of it for myself, Leila cheering me on as I inhale much longer then she did, "One of my favorites, had the Demeter kids back at Half Blood make this stuff all the time. My brother actually made a business out of it, producing it much faster and purer then anybody in the East Coast."

She whistles appreciatively, "Sounds like a good business model, think I might try something like that myself!"

"I'd be careful if you do. My brother accidentally started a drug war when it got out of hand. Plus you might be executed if you're caught, that stone guy outside seemed pretty adamant bad shit happens to drug users."

Leila scoffs and waves me off, "Please! Half of this camp is on some kind of drug! Most of the Mars legionaries inject steroids, no clue who's supplying them."

She points behind me, and sure enough I see a Mars gladiator injecting something into himself. He grits his teeth and roars once before punching his friend sitting across from him at the table.

"Geez, this place is fucked up."

She nods and goes back to inhaling her blunt. Soon enough Leila uses her powers to grow and treat some more marijuana, passing her handmade blunts out to much of the gladiators in the mess hall with us.

Not long after the underground room is filled with a light haze, the whole number of occupants lying around lazily, eyes red from their powerful highs.

I don't remember when it happened, but at some point Thalia joined Leila and I around the table, said 'maiden' getting shit-faced high.

"Goddamn! This is some good shit, better then the stuff Phoebe gets."

"Wait, Hunters get high?"

"Oh god do we ever! We aren't 'supposed to', but honestly as long as we're mostly aware Artemis doesn't give a shit! I've seen her get high a few times too, wish I had a camera so I could show you what she's like. I'll give you a hint… _she's a light weight!"_

We all start giggling like idiots, or more accurately like Hyenas with how ugly we sound.

Before we can really start to relax, the door leading to the higher levels kicks open and the woman operating the service desk of the Colosseum marches in. She crinkles her nose in distaste as she examines the state of the room.

"Godsdamn! Can't believe you assholes didn't give me any! Whatever. MYSTIC! Where you at fool?!"

I raise my hand slowly into the air.

"Good, grab your gear and get your ass up to the arena. You've got a match in a couple minutes."

My eyes widen in surprise and hack out a big puff of smoke.

"F-fuck! What the Hades dude?! I didn't sign up for a fight today! I'm still healing from Thalia kicking my ass like a day ago!"

She sighs angrily and points towards the hallway leading to the platform, "Look, this is some stupid order from the Senate. If you ask me it's some bullshit, but you can't argue with them."

She digs into her pocket and throws me a bag of ambrosia, "Just take some of this and do your best, I've got a lot of money bet on you winning!"

I roll my eyes and sigh dramatically, and Thalia pats my back sadly and shakes her head. I pop a bite of ambrosia into my mouth and sigh in relief as I feel it soothing out the aches all over my body.

"Knock em' dead Samson, show them why Greeks kick ass!"

Leila cheers me on as I push myself away from the table and head off towards my platform. Gods I'm way too high to deal with this shit!

* * *

My trip up to the combat arena is surprisingly quiet, for whatever reason the crowd is incredibly quiet. At most I hear is some odd mumblings and chatter, maybe a few odd claps as my cage opens and I step out into the arena.

Many even gasp as they see me covered in tons of bandages, their eyes filled with suspicion and worry.

"What's this then? He's too injured to fight!"

"Yeah, what's going on? Is this some kind of trap?"

"Boo! Let him rest!"

"Unfair! This is unfair!"

"Damn politicians! This is their work I know it!"

Much of the crowd becomes angsty, angry even. They holler and boo at Reyna up in the King's Box, said Praetor pinching the bridge of her nose and just taking all the abuse.

Overall it's an odd feeling in the Colosseum, it feels unprofessional and hasty. They don't even have the announcer out! I just walked out into the arena without any kind of person introducing me like it's been every other time!

My opponents cage opens, and a massive… well I guess white-eyed young man walks lazily out into the arena. I recognize him as being the man I saw standing besides Reyna in my initiation match. He's not bulky like The Hammer is, but he is freakishly tall.

His armor looks golden, a well-designed and decorated Legion Commander's armor. His golden Falcata sings with a powerful enchantment, frost magic easy for me to sense now that I'm within a close proximity to him.

I try and study him some more, but fuck is it hard to do when I'm super stoned and still hazy from my fight yesterday!

Reyna rises from her throne and the crowd quiets down, looking at her expectantly.

"Welcome loyal patrons. I… apologize for this sudden match, I know it's lack of integrity is unprofessional-"

"Damn right it is! What is this bullshit?!"

She clears her throat and the heckler settles down, "-Our Senate has decided to add another Roman contender to the list. Please give a round of applause for our loyal son of Rome… Peter Sane!"

All he gets is a few reluctant claps and some angry murmurs. Peter raises his icy sword into the air and waves it around a few times, showing off some cool and fancy moves you would see in movies. Some real showy stuff. It's pretty easy to tell, though, that he doesn't want to be here.

His smile is strained, like he's literally fighting against a frown.

"Thank you, thank you! Glad to be here, just so unbelievably happy. Please, don't clap too hard!"

A potato hits him in the back of the head with surprising strength.

"Boo! Get out of here you Senate payroll monkey!"

Peter rubs the back of his head and glares at the woman who threw the potato but relents and sighs sadly.

"Guess I deserved that," He turns to me and gives me a sincere, yet strained smile, "Sup dude, I'm gonna be your challenger today."

His white eyes trail over the bandages and bruises on my body, "Yikes! No wonder the Senate is trying to take you down right now."

Suddenly his voice goes quiet as his eyes dart side to side, _"Don't worry, I'm on your side! I'll go easy and leave plenty of openings."_

Oh shit, double agent! Fuck I am WAY to high for this. I rub my temples as I feel a headache coming on and give him a flimsy thumbs up. Peter raise an eyebrow at me but doesn't otherwise say anything else.

Reyna continues her speech, "There's no need to introduce Peter's opponent today, his strength and skill have earned him the right to fame from sight alone! Challengers, you may begin when you are ready! Oh, and Samson? Please keep the fight _inside_ the arena. I'm willing to overlook two, but three counts of leaving the fight is really testing my patience."

I wave her off, causing her to frown at me. She rolls her eyes and sits back down in her seat, taking a bottle of wine Blake hands her and pouring it into two goblets and handing one to the Gargarean king who looks as happy as a child on Christmas to receive it.

Peter gets into a combat stance and gives me a questioning look.

"Are you not going to use your weapons?"

I blink a few times in confusion… what the hell does that mean?

"Oh fuck, thanks for the reminder," I summon Mori's cutlass and my shield into my arms, lighting the sword ablaze and giving it a few test swings.

His sword uses ice magic, so logically a fire sword is the perfect counter!

My sword comes around behind my head and I stand in my standard Wrath guard stance. Peter's white eyes harden, and he examines my form.

With my shield extended out, the best way to counter my stance would be to go for my legs, it's the only opening. Of course Peter is a legionnaire, he surely knows my stance has an opening like this on purpose.

His stance is much more simple, his falcata is level with his hip and his left armored arm is bent and extended outwards. Basic tactics would be for him to parry with his sword and strike with his fist. It's risky not using a shield with a chopping sword like that, but it makes it easy for him to grapple and strike after.

I need to be on guard then, if he's comfortable without a shield then he's very clearly skilled enough to make up for his weakness.

Peter slowly starts advancing towards me, his footwork well placed and steady, legs ready to react and strike out like a venomous snake.

Now I advance towards him myself, shield held firm and ready to block his attack. Comparing him to a snake was a good comparison on my part, when I was close enough his sword stabbed out with incredible force and speed it felt like I was being hit with a cannonball!

My arm stings from the strength of his hit, but I use our close proximity to lash out with my flaming blade. It bounces off Peter's armored arm, said man wincing from the intense heat and pushing it away. He brings his falcata around and goes for a chopping attack, my shield gongs and vibrates from the even stronger hit and I wince from the pain cause by the vibrations.

We both push away from the other at the same time and size each other up now that we've tasted a bit of what our foe is capable of.

Peter's falcata is an interesting weapon, pre-empire in origin and nearly identical to a Greek kopis. The blade is like a sword version of the kukri, most of the weight being put passed the bend in the blade. This means that his sword can hit with the same effectiveness of an axe while keeping a far longer cutting-edge.

It's mostly made for chopping attacks, but he's shown he's capable of using more advanced techniques like thrusting.

Just from our simple skirmish I can tell he's an incredibly skilled fighter, though if he really is taking it easy then I'd be super happy. I don't want to use any of my magic until I fight against Lanius, sorcery is my trump card and showing all of my abilities puts me at a disadvantage.

Peter rolls his empty hand around, hissing through his teeth as he feels at the darkened metal of his armguard.

"Geez! That's a nasty sword you've got, felt like I put my hand too close to a fire! How's that ice feeling? We are opposite elementals it seems."

I roll my shield arm, the intense cold becoming apparent, "Phew, that is cold. My whole arm feels numb now, hope I don't get frost bit or anything."

"Don't worry about that, I'm holding back a little so you won't freeze to death or anything. Just watch how many hits you take! The cold has a nasty habit of sapping stamina from you!"

"Dutifully noted, just make sure you don't cook your arm or anything! Razor doesn't burn at a low heat and I can't turn it down any."

He groans comically and feels at the hot metal on his arm, "Thanks for the heads up! I would like to get a tan the regular way thank you very much!"

We get back into our combat stances and begin circling around the other like sharks to their prey. The crowd is still quiet, but I can tell their focus is so intense that they're staying silent. It seems like they're torn between who to root for, a famous new foreign champion or their defending Honor Guard champion.

His sword lashes out like a python and smashes into my shield, the familiar cold instantly chilling and coating it with a layer of frost. I counter with a slash from my cutlass but he quickly brings his sword around and parries it away.

Steam explodes when the swords impact and blinds both of us. Peter's instincts are honed well, he lashes out with a fierce kick that connects with my middle and pushes me away.

I don't get even a fraction of a second to rest as he sprints at me like a Hunter and unleashes a flurry of furious and powerful strikes. I hold out with my shield, parrying them away but his speed keeps me on the defensive.

He was right about the effects of cold on stamina, I can feel my arm numbing and losing strength. This is even worse then when Thalia had me locked on the defensive like this, each of his hits makes me weaker and weaker!

He ceases his thrusting attacks and goes for a stab, I use the window of opportunity to strike out and slash with my sword at his chest. Peter swings his sword around and parries just as I hoped! I use the opening on his right to bash at him with my shield, hitting his arm and shoulder.

Peter growls and grabs my shield with his free hand and pulls my shield out of position. His sword snakes around and slaps at my ribs, cold instantly chilling my chest and forcing me to gasp.

Juggernaut is impenetrable to his sword, but it's still a fabric material. I can feel a long bruise forming along my ribs as well as the biting cold. Juggernaut has good resistance to temperature, but magic cold is more extreme then natural cold. I can only resist it so much!

I throw my body weight into my shield and force Peter to his feet. He rolls backwards and stands back to his feet, shaking off the dust and grinning at me with excitement.

"Damn dude, you're pretty good! Haven't had this much fun in a fight since Jason! I wish we could go all out, but you _need_ to win this. Warhead's counting on that win and I'll do whatever she needs to make it happen, even sacrifice my pride and lose this fight!"

His sword is slamming into my shield again and I grit my teeth and push back, countering with my own series of heavy strikes, each hit that connects heating um Peter's armor and turning the gold into a dirty black color.

"You aren't making this easy if you're trying lose!"

"Well of course I won't make it _easy!_ Besides, I need to play well enough for the Senate so they don't try and banish me or some garbage like that!"

Fair enough. We continue our fierce back and force, fire and ice exploding in fierce blasts of steam that coats the entire arena. I wonder what it looks like for the crowd? The steam is thick like fog and prevents them from really seeing what's happening, only the sounds of steel clashing and the hiss of steam being available to them.

Of course, it's even harder for Peter and me to see anything. We can only really fight because we're a few feet apart, but if I can get away from him… there's a chance for a sneak attack!

Peter's sword quickly blocks my upwards swing, but the contact angle from our opposite elemental swords sends a blast of steam upwards and directly into his face.

He clutches his eyes and cries out in shock. I quickly slash his middle with my cutlass and run away into the heavy mist, crouching low and letting Juggernaut's silver color hide me within the fog.

I can hear Peter's heavy armor crunching loudly in the fog, but I can't make any sense of where he is with my eyes. It takes effort and concentration, but I can pinpoint him fairly decently thanks to the training Selene and I share.

Slowly I sneak towards where I think Peter is, silently moving across the arena floor and preparing for a knockout sneak attack.

A bright figure slowly comes to my vision through the fog, Peter's golden armored back facing me as he looks around in confusion. Slowly I come close to him and launch off the floor and bring my sword down in a heavy arc. Peter quickly spins around and blocks with his sword, but I strike hard enough to push his sword down and away.

He brings it back up in an instant and counters with a heavy horizontal strike at my shield. My arms stings from the intensity of it, but I grit my teeth and use the chance to counter with my own sword. His eyes widen and he brings his forearm up to block my vertical strike, but the weakened metal yields to the sharpness of Razor!

Peter cries out in pain as the edge bites through the metal and into his bone. I can tell it doesn't go deep but being cut into your bone with a sword that's literally on fire hurts like Hades!

He kicks my shield and forces me back several feet and clutches at his injured arm. His wound was cauterized instantly, but the pain is not a something light.

Before I can follow up with another attack he throws his sword hand into the air and a torrent of wind like a hurricane explodes from his sword and knocks me to my back while also blowing the fog in the arena away.

Peter pants and glares at me with his hollow eyes, but his feral smile tells me he's really enjoying this.

"F-fuck, you're a clever little shit! I-I think I'm good right about now, so use a fancy spell or something. I _really_ need to get this wound checked out!"

I wince at his statement, "Oof, then brace yourself, this one might hurt!"

"It's fine dude," He says waving me off with his sword, "Another scar to the collection is alright!"

"Suit yourself. Here it comes!"

A golden aura covers my body, Peter's eyes widen in excitement as he braces himself for my attack.

I can't help but feel bad for him, Sunburst at low power still hits like a damn truck! I extend my hand out and a fierce tendril of light flies out like a miniature Solar Corona and smashes into Peter. He cries out in shock as the light yanks him off his feet and carries his body along and smashes it into the arena wall. The impact shatters the stone and seemingly shakes the Colosseum.

Peter coughs a few times in his hole, eyes wide with manic glee, "S-shit dude! That'll do it!"

His eyes roll back into his head and he goes limp, signaling I won technically. I can't help but feel cheated, Peter and I couldn't go all out like Thalia and I did earlier. This kind of… sucks. I sigh despondently and shake my head. Maybe we can fight with no handicaps later?

The audience screams and roars in excitement, hurling insults at Peter's unconscious form, completely unaware that he was forced into this fight against his will.

I feel really bad for the man; his reputation has been damaged and he allowed it to happen willingly for Reyna's sake. Now that's loyalty, sacrificing his honor and pride for the sake of someone he cares about.

Reyna stands up from her throne, a big smile on her face as she extends her arms out, passing a shit eating grin to a group of people in one of the other sky boxes.

"Congratulations hero! What you've just accomplished is no easy feat, Peter is regarded as one of the strongest fighters in the Legion! I offer my sincerest apologies for forcing you to fight wounded, and alongside I offer you a favor. Name your reward, and should I find it reasonable you will be gifted immediately!"

A reward of my own choosing? Shit, I could ask for treasure or something insane like that!

But… I am not a greedy man. There's only one thing I desire from the Romans, a simple weapon that belonged to a good friend of mine.

My eyes sparkle with unshed tears as I look up to Reyna in her box, said woman standing proud like a goddess rewarding a hero like from stories of old.

"I wish for ownership of Troy's axe!"

* * *

A feast is held in my Honor in the gladiator barracks after my defeat of Peter, dozens of hardened warriors getting drunk and tearing through the mountains of food a mysterious provider had purchased for us. I suspect the money came from Reyna, but it also could have just come from a wealthy fan.

Thalia slaps me roughly on the back and takes a huge swig of her mead, "Where's that smile _Champion?!"_

She gives me a teasing smile and points at Troy's axe resting on my lap, "W-what's with the axe? You could've asked for so much more! Not that it's a bad weapon, but why an axe? You've got that cane and that fancy fire sword!"

I spine the heavy metal axe around and examine its craftsman ship for a moment, fully aware of Thalia getting impatient with lack of a response.

"There's a few reasons really. One is just my desire to see his weapon used by a better person than Laius, the other is the tactical advantage of it."

She gives me a curious look and motions for me to continue, "I don't have a heavy weapon, which means heavily armored opponents can tank my hits until I get luck or use magic. I prefer not to use magic often, so a tool for armor is necessary. A War Axe is a good fit for that, the heavy blade being used to dent and possibly even break through the armor with blunt force alone."

"Then you've got a good weapon, that thing looks straight up medieval," She exclaims, pointing out the stubby back spike opposite of the long and wide blade, "What's with that little guy there? I haven't seen something like that on Greek or Roman weapons before."

"You're correct, it isn't Greek or Roman in origin. This spike right here is something that likely came from the Middle East. Though the design is more Nordic, this spike on the back is clearly not in the original design. I think Troy had this added, the clever devil. You can grab shield and pierce armor like a nail with it."

Thalia whistles appreciatively at my short history lesson, finding newfound respect for weapons outside of the traditional demigod arsenal.

"You're an enchanter, right? Got any plans for a special ability for it? Oh! Give it lightning! That's always worked good for me!"

"Hmm, maybe yeah! I have something cool planned, but I can't do anything with it for a while. Enchanting professionally can take a week if you're not a skilled mage… but I'm not a novice! I've got my workshop in my van, give me a few days and I'll have it ready!"

Thalia gives me her iconic toothy grin, "There you go! Give it something good, I want to watch Lanius get his ass kicked with it! Ironic, using Troy's weapon to kill his killer."

I smile sadly, "Yeah… that's another reason why I wanted it. Give Troy one last honor and use his weapon to avenge him."

She leans back in her chair, eyes going distant as she takes a sip of her mead, "Good… good…"

The feast carries on as Thalia and I kick back and relax, getting some well-deserved rest. I excuse myself for the night and head to my bunk, passing out with Horse snuggled up right to my side.

My dream is so life like for a moment I thought it actually was reality! I look around my surroundings and see that I'm outside of my palace. I'm standing outside on my porch, looking over the railings at the great big garden Mori and I had planted when we got married.

The full moon is high up in the sky, stars twinkling beautifully. It's almost mesmerizing, unnaturally so. I can guess who I have to thank for the night being like this…

I lean against the railing and turn my head, looking at Abigail/Selene as she stares longingly at the moon. After the return of her memories and true identity, every manifestation of her within my mind has changed to reflect it.

Her age is still relative with mine, but the weird horn-like protrusions in her hair show her change. The odd tiara poking out of her hair is actually an ornamental crescent moon, reflecting bright silver in the moonlight.

"Hello Selene, how's it going?"

She turns to me and gives me a deadpan look, "I'm sore. Any reason for that? Like say an intense fight against a man who uses a frost enchanted sword? I feel everything you do, idiot. Pain fucking sucks."

I chortle at her and she just rolls her eyes and goes back to looking at the moon.

"You've got a visitor actually, Mori's in your dream. Don't worry, I've isolated her in the ballroom. She won't be digging around in your unconscious mind or anything."

A sudden wave of anxiety hits me. She's-she's here?! Why is she here?!

Selene glances at me from the corner of her eye, "Don't ask me, I don't know why either. There're a couple ways we could go about this. We kick her out right here and now safely knowing she's done no harm or…"

"Or we confront her, risk a mental infestation and try and convert her back to our side."

She nods and looks back up at the moon. I think it over for a second, weighing the potential risk of allowing a witch as powerful as Mori to have some interaction with inside of my own mind.

Fuck, I've got to do it, don't I?

"Well, let's get dressed up, shall we?"

* * *

I adjust my tie, smoothing out my fancy tuxedo and walking towards the great doors separating the ballroom from the rest of my house. Selene walks with me, donned in a beautiful black chiton with shimmering lights like stars woven into the fabric.

We stand before the doors, trepidation eating away at my insides. Selene gives me an expectant look, and I roll my eyes and push the door open.

Music instantly fills the halls, a smooth strumming of a harp mixed in with some woodwind instruments. We strut into the ballroom together, the fancy gold and red decorations almost blinding us with how vivid the colors are.

The music is seemingly coming from nowhere within the room, echoing out like ghosts or spirits were making the noise.

My breath hitches as I make out the haunting form of my wife, her pale hair shining like gold under the chandelier. Her back is turned to me, but even just a glimpse makes my heart hurt. Gods, she's _beautiful._

She spins around, her black dress twirling as those emerald orbs stare into my very soul. I take a few unconscious steps forward, and then a few more until I suddenly find myself within arms reach of her. Mori gives me a loving smile, my heart stilling from the radiant beauty of it.

"Hello, dear, it's been a while," Her words are like honey, a sense of calmness and familiarity filling my being. She extends a dainty hand out to me, "Care to lead me on a dance?"

I take her hand gently into mine, remembering the familiar callouses she earned from years of swordplay.

"It would be my honor."

We stand close together, and I lead us on an elegant waltz within the empty ballroom. We glide like ghosts across the tiled floor, both of us laughing merrily in enjoyment.

I twirl her around and dip her before bringing her back up, I flinch in surprise as she leans against my chest. Taking hold of her waist, I draw her close and lean my head over hers, letting the soft feeling of her hair brush against my cheek.

"I missed you," She mumbles like a young child, "I want this to be real. Oh gods, I'm so desperate."

She hiccups once softly, and I can't help but let the tears of sorrow and frustration fall down my cheeks.

"This is real, Mori, _I_ am real. Please, come back to me, we can fix this! Just… just please stop fighting, my heart can't take it anymore."

I feel her lips pull into a soft smile against the fabric of my shirt, "I wish I could, but I can't stop anymore. It's a miracle I can come to you like this, free from _her_ control if only for a minute. Samson I'm… I'm sorry, I've failed you. I think… I think you have to accept I'm gone. Please, for your sake, move on. I can't be separated from her, we've almost merged fully now. If you love me, then let go of your attachment to me."

"NO," I cry out, shoving my face into her hair, "I-I can't do that! You're here! You can fight her, beat her and kick her out for good!"

She shakes her head sadly in my chest, "It's no use, she's too strong. I can only do this once before she locks me away for good. My time here is fleeting, and I am fading. Let me go and move on, it's okay. I-I'll always love you, Samson…"

Slowly she fades away in my arms, and I'm left sobbing as I grasp at the air she once used to occupy. A crushing weight comes down and smashes my heart into tiny bits, an overwhelming feeling of… nothing takes over my very being.

 _She's gone, and for good now. I won't ever see Mori again._

Selene comes to my side and places a gentle hand on my shoulder. Her eyes shine with tears, and in that moment I feel connected with my past life more strongly then I've ever felt before.

The world around us begins to darken, shadows growing until everything becomes nothing but a dark void. Pressure begins to fill the space around us, a pulsating growth of power signaling from somewhere in the pit Selene and I are trapped in.

Silver light then begins to shine behind us. We spin around and see the scarred moon staring down at us, the heavenly body seeming so large in the void it feels like we could simply reach out and touch it.

A small shadow stands centermost in front of the light. The silhouette of a woman with her back turned to us gazes up into the beautiful moon.

My eyes harden as I gaze upon the figure, knowing full well who she is. This is _her,_ the Titan that has poisoned Mori's mind and turned her into a shadow of who she truly is. This is the mysterious Titan, the ancient being that has been troubling me from the very start.

"I know who you are, I know your name. Turn around and face me you coward! No more hiding in the shadows!"

The being slowly turns their head, moonlight stretching across her face and illuminating her features in full. I can't help but feel unnerved as I gaze upon the face of my friend. Selene's face shines from the Titan that has taken control of Mori, her gaze neutral as she leers down at us like ants beneath her boot.

"Know this, I will kill you **Luna!** "

* * *

Days have passed since my defeat of Peter, and I've been hard at work upgrading Troy's axe. No plots or secret attempts at my success have come from the Senators here, they must've backed off when the public found out about their little plot.

After many hours of hard work, I've finally finished up the last enchantment of my axe. Power flows through the weapon, an intensity that perhaps surpasses the strength of the twin cutlasses I hade made for… Mori and me.

I spin it around and give it a few good test strikes, the weight flowing nicely and with great strength. Excellent, this will be perfect for countering Lanius's armor!

The time has now come, I announced my challenge against Lanius and the handlers instantly got to work preparing the Colosseum for my challenge. Within an hour, posters are hung all around New Rome, and only an hour after hundreds of people have piled into the stands of the Colosseum.

It seems like the entire Roman population has filled the stands, even the guards that should be protecting the borders. There's even a little statue of Terminus hanging out in the now empty gladiator's barracks, said warriors having decided to break the rules and sit in the bleachers with everyone else.

"You're really gonna try? Kid, you'll end up like the previous master of that axe. It's never too late to call this off, no one's ever even gotten close to defeating Lanius."

"It doesn't matter who's failed in the past, I'll be the one to beat him. Is there anything you're allowed to tell me? Special gear he has?"

"I can only tell you one secret, it's in the rules a challenger may be allowed one piece of information at their request."

"Then tell me about his gear, I wish to know what magical items he has."

Terminus nods his stony head, "Then you get to know he's completely immune to mundane magic."

I almost choke on my water as he says that, "IMMUNE?! That's-how in the world?!"

"Don't ask me, I don't know. All I know is Mars gave it to him after years of hard fighting, it must be a boon seeing as Lanius is his eldest mortal son. Either way, I've answered your question. Give him hell kid, I want a good show!"

Terminus's statute vanishes in a flash of light, and I'm left with only Horse in the silent barracks. It's unnerving, even watching Troy die this room has never been silent.

" _You ready lad? This won't be a fight won easy, even with that axe of yours. Add in his immunity to magic and you're suddenly without a trump card. I won't lie lad, odds are you won't be the one to walk away."_

"Yeah… I don't think I can either. If I'm killed here then I suppose it's alright, I mean I'll eventually come back to life in time. Such is the curse of immortality after all."

" _Who cares about that? You've got friends, family, a_ _ **wife**_ _all counting on you. Don't feel sorry for yourself and give in to sadness, beat that fool and carry on like any real warrior! Odds are against you, but I believe in you! You've been through worse and fought harder enemies, this is just some old man in a gold mask!"_

I chuckle lightly at Horse's words. God is this little spitfire right, it won't end here! Determination turns men into gods, and that's just what I have to do to win! If I can make my plan work, then I just might be able to do this!

"MYSTIC! YOUR CHALLENGER IS READY! ASCEND THE PLATFORM AND ACCEPT YOUR GLORY!"

Well, guess it's finally time. Horse snorts in amusement and shoos me away, telling me to make sure I come back!

" _Knock that bastard down lad! Make sure you come back as the Grand Champion!"_

I nod at him and turn around, marching to the platform and standing upon it. I give the signal to the operator, and it rises slowly into the air. The crowd's cheers are one for blood and glory, they've come for me to win or die, prove myself worthy or die like a bleeding dog.

I refuse to go down like Troy, I'm not dying in my own pool of blood!

The platform comes to a stop at the arena, my cage already open and inviting. There's no need for a fancy announcer, no need for any kind of hype man to ready the crowd for the blood feast they're about to witness.

This right here? This is just business.

I step through the blinding light and into the arena, the crowd cheering my name as I walk into the center of the arena. Lanius is not here yet, his personal entrance being right underneath Reyna's King's Box.

The roar of the crowd cheers on from all around me, hundreds of demigods, Nymphs, spirits and other such beings line the stands. They rise and roar my name in honor, eyes shining with excitement and even… hope?

Huh, I guess the crowd really is with me. All these people, all these faces I've met, they have **hope** in me? Maybe… maybe I can do this after all?

Suddenly the crowd goes silent. An eerie feeling crosses my skin as goosebumps roll down my arms.

 _He has come._

Slowly, from the darkness, Lanius emerges from his entrance tunnel. The hot sun in the sky reflects off his golden armor, red fabric lines decoratively along his sides, the color so deep and rich it makes it look like blood.

His armor is bulky and heavy, easily a few hundred pounds, but the mountain of a man moves in it like it were an extension of his body. That hollow and lifeless mask he wears… hiding beneath its golden shell is a man. No matter the reputation, no matter the legend… _he is just a man._

The bloody cape of his bellows out dramatically in the wind, flurrying like a hero's cape does in every fantasy movie. Those empty holes in his mask gazes out at me as he approaches. After a moment of tense silence, he's within ten feet of me, his presence alone sending off signals of danger within my brain.

And then he speaks, and his voice alone begins to fill be with fear.

" **So, the Owl comes, as foretold by fate itself. Why is it you are here? For glory? Fame? No, I've seen your eyes in a hundred men before you. It is revenge, you seek retribution for the Myrmidon. That is why you carry his axe is it not? A dramatic sense of righteousness, avenge a murdered man with the weapon he once wielded. Speak your peace, Owl, I wish to hear your words."**

"Hmph, you're right, I'll use this weapon against you, and I know I'll succeed with it by my side. I come for you with something far greater then retribution, the life of the one closest to me hangs by a thread. Their freedom requires your death. Once I felt bad about killing you, but after what you did to Troy… well, buddy, I'm all out of pity."

" **Then you fight with honor at your side, a desperate man fighting for the one he loves. I can see it in your eye, she means more to you then you realize. Hmm, I see we are similar, two men forced into a fight for the ones they love. Perhaps then you will succeed where I had failed. Come for me now, fight me with all your might and she me if you're worthy of life!"**

He throws his cape off with dramatic flair, the fabric flying away in the wind and discarding somewhere off to the side. His sword comes over his shoulder, the massive blade being almost his entire height.

" **The Blade of the West. None have survived its wrath before. Unsheathe your weapons now so it may taste blood in honorable combat!"**

I summon my shield and ready my new axe, Lanius, the Titan of a man, readies his blade, gripping it with two strong hands. A moment of silence passes between us, two warriors prepared to fight to the death and coming to terms with and accepting such a fate.

Only one of us may leave this Colosseum alive, and I aim to be that pyrrhic victor!

* * *

The chunk of steel Lanius calls a sword crashes down onto my shield, and the strike alone shakes my bones to the point that I think he fractured it through the metal! I grit my teeth in pain and counter, bringing my axe around and smashing into his leg with it.

Lanius grunts and grabs my arm, his grip so tight it hurts, and he swings me around and throws me a solid twenty feet away. I cough upon my impact, rolling desperately back to my feet only for Lanius to bash me across my side like he was playing golf with my whole body!

I'm thrown yards away again, only this time I don't get back to my feet. Golden blood coughs from my lips, my lungs struggling to intake air. The heavy steps of Lanius approach, trepidation takes control of my heart and the most intense amount of adrenaline rushes through my veins.

Quickly I throw myself back to my feet and stand guard again, Lanius's shadow looming over me as he brings his great sword down to cleave me in twine. I roll away from the strike and throw my axe at Lanius, the weight and power of the hit forcing him to stumble lightly.

Razor forms in my hand and I bring it down along the length of his back with all my might, scratching a long groove down the plate and sending him into a kneel.

Before I can even blink he spins around and bashes me across the ribs, cracking several on impact and launching me away into the far wall like a baseball. I collide with the stone, cracking it and almost certainly breaking my shield arm fully while I'm at it!

I plop unceremoniously to the ground, crying in pain as my arm stings with the worst agony I've ever felt. My shield disappears, now that my defensive arm is broken in at least three places just carrying the weight of it will do more harm than good.

With a final cry of pain I force myself to stand, throwing my broken arm against the wall and using it to hold myself up as the bones scream in agony. I glare at my foes as his thundering footsteps march towards me, each one assured and slow.

He doesn't have to move fast anymore, at this point he's basically beating a dead horse.

" **And so this drama ends like it always has. You are weak, Owl, you lack commitment. Even now I can see it shining in your eyes, that fear gnawing at your psyche. You surprise me, I had you figured for a warrior of words. Before you die know that I hold you as an honorable man. Tell me your name, no warrior such as yourself shall go without being acknowledged."**

"Samson… I am Samson Akira. And I am a warrior of words, I merely choose when it is needed. Right now, now there's no need for such things. Very few people have had me this beat in only a few minutes, but our fight is far from over. Always watch your back, Lanius, a smart enough man might know a weakness when he sees one."

I extend my hand out, surprising Lanius as his hollow mask gazes at me dumbfoundedly. Before he can voice his question, he cries out in shock and pain as Troy's axe flies from the ground and buries itself into his back.

The axe followed the cut I made in his back armor perfectly, splitting the metal soundly and piercing his back deep. He grunts and groans in fury, desperately clawing at the magical weapon.

A smirk forms on my face and I extend my hand out again, ripping the weapon free from his flesh where it flies over to me and I catch it with a grunt.

" **What sorcery is this?! You have the power to imbue weapons with life?!"**

His confusion straight up causes me to start laughing like a psychopath, causing Lanius to take a cautious step backwards.

"And here you are, wrong again! The axe has no life, only a special power! I can throw that weapon into the sea and it will always return to my hand should I demand. Like Thor's hammer, it will always come back!"

" **Trickery then, so you are less of a man than I expected."**

"Not less, just a smart man. So many fools believe in might alone, forgetting all about the benefits of trickery! Is this a fair fight? No, our skills are leagues apart. I'm not to proud to admit it, your strength and skill far surpasses mine. But I can even things out, use my smarts to my advantage. Oh, and that tingling you're feeling in your back? That's a little concoction I brewed up, a poison that will slowly eat your stamina until you can barely breathe! You have at most five minutes before you collapse on top of yourself!"

" **GAHHH! Weak coward! I have minutes you say?! Then see if you're strong enough to last! I won't hold back any longer!"**

I smirk at him, "Good. Show me that legendary strength!"

Lanius unleashes an earth-shaking roar and races at me, smashing his sword into the ground that I nimbly duck away from. Now that he's been injured on his back, his attacks are significantly slower and easy to predict!

As cocky as I'm presenting myself, the whole façade is just a ruse. I'm actually freaking the hell out right now! This dude is **pissed,** and a single hit would probably kill me!

But it's what I have to do. The poison I made is slow acting, so Lanius going insane and charging me left and right like this will help speed up the infection. It's a classic tactic but using your enemies' anger against them has always been easy for blockheads like this!

Sweat trickles down the side of my face as I desperately dodge Lanius's quick and furious strikes, each strike slowly getting closer then the last! For all good the poison is doing for me right now, I think Lanius's anger is even more powerful than the goddamn potion!

As it turns out, my theory is correct. Unfortunately, Lanius is only minimally affected by the potion, at most he attacks slower. The paralysis is having no effect at all!

If I want to win now, then I need to push him on the defensive! He can't swing that sword as well now, the wound and the poison doing the most to damage his stamina then the constant swinging around of a massive bastard sword.

I duck under one of his great, powerful swings and launch my counter attack, flurrying my axe out with a series of swift and careful strikes, aiming for the connections in his armor.

Before I know it he lashes out with a heavy headbutt, stunning me as he yanks the axe from my hand and throws it far away. Pain then erupts in my leg as he kicks the joint of my knee, bruising it so bad that I'm forced to collapse down onto one knee.

I look up at him just in time to see him bash me across the side of the helmet with his sword. Just as it connects, and my neck feels like it's on fire, a bright light and deafening roar explode out. I hear Lanius scream in agony, and that's the last thing I can comprehend before darkness overtakes me.

* * *

It takes several moments for me to come to, my neck aching like someone bashed me there with a brick or something! Of course, that's the moment when I remember my knee is bruised, sprained, broken or just a mix of all three.

I take Ram off my head and examine it, the metal just as shiny and perfect as the day I forged it. Holy shit, I thought he would've dented it with how hard he bashed that sword with it!

Shards of metal litter the floor around me, the recognizable pieces of the Blade of the West scattered and destroyed thoroughly. Did… did Ram do this? I suppose I shouldn't be surprised, it was made with divine essence after all.

A shadow suddenly looms over me, the hairs on the back of my neck raising as a feeling of fear crosses over me.

Slowly I look upwards, Lanius stands before me, armor dented and broken, his breathing labored as a single red eye glares at me from the hole in his mask.

" **Y-you… you sniveling** _ **coward.**_ **We fight as men, yet you resort to trickery. There's not an ounce of honesty and pride to you, only tricks and fancy baubles. My sword has been shattered, but my arms are still strong!"**

Before I can even try anything his hands wrap around my throat, squeezing hard as his heavy metal gauntlets strangle the air from me. He lifts me up into the air, showing me off to the crowd like some trophy as the life slowly leaves me eyes.

I desperately beat against his armor, logic and self-control leaving me and being replaced by primal fear.

T-this must b-be it I guess, choked out by a furious warrior. All of what I've been through ends here, a real death. No honor, I can't even fight back properly.

Images flash in my mind, the faces of all those I've lost to endless march of time. I see the dark eyes of my father, twinkling in glee as I say my first word. Thomas happily showing me his first surreal painting, Steven demonstrating his immense strength by lifting me up like a weight lifter. Richard squealing in delight as his first profits come through, years of hard work and preparation paying off finally. Then there's William, the young jeweler who made pieces so beautiful even Aphrodite acquired some for herself.

And then… I see… _her._ My love, my life, Mori smiling at me, my heart melting like butter on a hot day. We used to love to dance with one another, practicing day in and out until we grew so tired that we would fall asleep the moment we touched a bed.

Hot tears leak from my eyes, the crushing blow of despair finally hitting home. I've… failed… I couldn't save her… I couldn't save myself…

 _Samson… I…Love…You…_

No. NO! I summon my cutlass and stab it through the cracked armor of Lanius's belly, flesh singing and smoke pouring from the wound as he screams in agony and lets my throat go. I pull my sword free and crash to the ground, hacking wildly as Lanius crashes to the floor with a grunt.

I crane my head at him and glare venomously, growling as pure fury overtakes me!

"Shoulda' choked me a bit faster golden boy!" I throw my hand out and catch my axe. Lanius struggles to stand, so I bash him across the helmet with my axe and send him back down.

"I'm angry now, and bad things happen to those who piss me off!"

He tries to rise again so I bash him over the helmet once more, a long crack slowly forming along the seam.

"I've lost too much!" I bash him in the chest, "Fought too much!" His knee cracks as I whack it like a golf ball, "Been through too much shit to die her to some old-fashioned ass that can't even _Stay. The. Fuck._ _ **Down!**_ _"_

I bean him over and over with each word, taking out my years of pent up frustrations on a man who has nothing to do with any of it.

A final hit breaks his mask open completely, exposing the aged and scarred face of a man who has just accepted his coming demise. Those red eyes of his shine with fear, his hands held up in a pitiful attempt to calm me down.

He closes his eyes for a moment, and when he opens them again I'm surprised to see nothing but acceptance within them. He's ready to die, and I shall be his Shepard.

I stand over him, axe raised high into the air like an angel of death. Lanius is a lost soul, and I shall send him into the abyss!

Many moments pass as I huff and stare into his eyes, a new meaning passing into me the longer I stare. That overwhelming rush of adrenaline has finally ended, and in that withdrawal, I see things I thought I never would again.

His face changes in my nigh hysterical vision, turning into everyone of my brothers before finally shifting into my very own. It's just a hallucination, I know that very much, but I do respect the wisdom it shares with me.

 _This is not the right way._

I lower my axe to my side, staring into his red eyes one last time before turning around and marching back to my platform. The crowd murmurs in amazement, completely bewildered by my decision to spare Lanius's life.

Reyna rises from her seat and gives me a hard look, worry shining in her eyes as she fears I've just sabotaged months of hard work. I don't maintain eye contact long, the shame of ruining everything for her being too much to handle.

"W-why?" Lanius croaks out from behind me, "After coming this far, fighting these many hardships, you'll just end it here?! Is it worth it? Is this what you really want? I should be dead, it is my right to! I am not a good man, only by the decree of the gods do I keep my blade turned away from myself. Only another man has the right to take my life from me, it is my punishment and reward. I lost a cohort, all of my men under my leadership died. Fate has decided I should be slain, and here you are taking that right from me. I suffered! I fought and lost! Kill me and end my curse, it is my duty!"

I scoff and look at him over my shoulder, "For a former legate you're surprisingly dramatic. An old friend told me something about soldiers, that no matter the loss they must continue. You want to die? You say it's your right? I say you're wrong. I say you must work your ass off, do something with your life because so many sacrificed themselves, so you could stand here right now. If you wish to remain the Grand Champion, then whatever. But I'm going home now, I have things to do and I think I made my point clear. Goodbye, Lanius, may you find your honor again."

"…Goodbye, Owl, may the ground beneath your feet quake as you stride."

I stand before Reyna in her throne and throw my hands out in the air.

"Hey Reyna, can we have a party or something?"

She turns to Blake, "What do you say? A block party to celebrate our new Grand Champion?"

Blake looks away and taps his chin in thought, "Sounds good to me. What's our audience have to say about it?"

The deafening scream of several hundred people ready for a kickass party is all the permission we need.

Let's get fucked up mother fuckers!

* * *

I-I-I… I just have to say a few things; I'm a little drunk, and Romans can _party!_

Seriously, it's like Bacchus and Dionysus took over the minds of everyone here and sent them into a partying and fucking frenzy!

Not being metaphorical about the fucking thing either, I guess Romans in the future like their sex just as much as the did in the past. I'm still pretty messed up from Lanius, so Reyna took me to a nice little private room away from the army of rioting drunks.

And well… when you have two hormonal tipsy people with healthy libidos, they tend to get pretty frisky.

Touching, Kissing, a few things beyond that… yeah, I-I think I'm making a mistake. I feel her hand on my leg and a wave of nausea suddenly starts over taking me. I pull away from her and start mumbling fearfully, causing her to look at me with worry.

"S-Samson? Are you-what's- are you okay? You're kinda freaking me out. F-fuck, did I do something?"

"N-no… you're not her… you can never be her." I look at Reyna's worried face, and I swear for a moment I see Mori before she turns back into Reyna. I push away from her and clutch my head, having a mini freak out as Reyna gently rubs my back.

"I'm sorry Reyna, I feel awful. I'm supposed to be passed her… but I just can't help but see her everywhere! She! SHE!... She broke my heart... Gods, it just _hurts so much…_ "

Reyna wraps her arms around me and pulls me back, turning my head so my ear is over her heart. The gentle rhythmic pumping of her heart soothes my nerves, making me feel better just being in her embrace.

"I know, I'm sorry she hurt you so much. We don't have to go further if you don't want to, whatever you chose I'm okay with."

"…What do you think I should do? I just… can't think right now… s-some outside perspective would be nice."

She's quiet for a second, "I think you should consider it. This is selfish of me to say, but she's hurt you bad, real-real bad. Not only did she hurt you, but she left you behind and ran away to Alaska. I'm the one that's here right now, she's the one holding herself up thousands of miles away. I say… give it a chance, maybe what you need has been here the whole time."

There's probably like a dozen and a half things wrong with what she's saying, my sober brain would probably figure it out with no issues.

But fuck am I tipsy right now, and she's making a lot of sense!

"Y-yeah, let's… let's give it a shot. A night together… that sounds, yeah that sounds good right now."

She smiles and leans forward, giving me a sloppy kiss. The sick feeling in my gut slowly fades, it doesn't leave entirely but I still feel much better about this thing between us. Reyna pushes me down on the bed and our kissing starts becoming more primal.

It's always an odd feeling, making love to someone. There's a connection that happens, friends can become lovers or simply just a closer friend.

Reyna and I share that deep connection together as the night progresses, that wretched feeling inside of me slowly vanishing as we continue. Even if Reyna and I don't come together after this, I still think we can become great friends after. This connection we're sharing right now, I think sometimes it's a way for people to bond.

For the first time in years, I feel completely whole.

* * *

I slowly open my eyes, at first being very confused to be waking up in a completely new environment, but the memories of last night suddenly come back to me. All of the things I drunkenly did…the… person… I did drunkenly. I curse under my breath and slowly look behind me, hoping desperately that it was all just a fever dream or something.

Of course, I have no such luck. Reyna's bare back stares at me, and that overwhelming feeling of sickness returns with a vengeance. I cover my mouth to smother my gags, trying my hardest not to throw up!

I just- I can't be here right now! I throw the covers off my self and thankfully manage to find my underwear before racing off to the bathroom. I barely open the lid before I vomit nasty bile into the toilet, hacking and gagging violently as my stomach expels its contents.

It takes me several minutes to calm down, my heart beating so rapidly I thought I was going into cardiac arrest or something.

That still leaves the matter of… Reyna to handle. I clean myself up as best I can and walk back into the bedroom. Reyna's awake now, back turned to me as she covers her decency with the blanket. I sigh and sit on the bed, back to her as I twiddle my thumbs nervously.

"…I'm sorry," Her voice is quiet and soft, so much that it's barely above a whisper, "I shouldn't have pushed you like that. You were heartbroken, and I was being selfish. I… I'm sorry."

"No Reyna I… you don't have to blame yourself, I never stopped you. If anything, blame me. You were drunk and I took advantage of you. It's okay to hate me, I deserve it."

She scoffs, and I swear I can hear her rolling her eyes, "Don't be stupid. Chivalry is nice and all, but I was in the wrong too. We both made a mistake, and that's _okay._ I think… I think being friends is what we should stay as. I'm sorry Samson, but I think you need to go back to her. I just… I guess deep down inside I wanted us to have something."

"…Yeah… Look, I'm sorry we couldn't work out. Gods this stuff is so complicated! I feel like such a jerk leaving you like this… but you're right. I want, no I _need_ my wife back. Even if she's gone forever, I can't just forget about her. This sounds awful to say but thank you Reyna. Thank you for helping me understand things a little better."

The bed shifts, and I feel her crawl across and sit next to me on my side. She gives me a gentle smile and kisses me on the cheek. I feel myself flush in embarrassment, but I don't otherwise feel anything. That electricity from before is gone, and I'm okay with that.

I'm sorry Mori, call me selfish but I can't move on like you asked. No matter what it takes, no matter how long it takes, I'll come back for you!

I really owe Reyna a lot, the night we spent together really put things in perspective. I think we can both walk away from this with a newfound resolve. We really made each other better people, and I'm glad we spent the night as we did, even if it was a mistake.

And so, Reyna and I part each other's company; Not as two angry people bitter over one night of passion, but as two friends and adults who helped us learn and better ourselves.

But this is only just the beginning. Luna is still out there controlling Mori, planning some kind of nefarious actions undoubtedly. Likely laying all kinds of deadly traps and tortures ahead for me, but I refuse to runaway anymore.

I'm coming Mori, I promise you that! I don't know how you're still alive, but mark my words Luna, I will make you pay for all of this!


	51. Chapter 51

**A/N: And I'm back. Sorry for the long wait, I was fairly busy the past week here. I won't be able to get much out this coming week either, but hopefully after I'll be able to return to my consistent schedule. Anyways this chapter is going to be a slower one, it's just setup for the next arc but I do have a good scene planned. Hope you guys enjoy.**

* * *

 _With Samson, spring 2011_

Reyna gives me one final peck on the cheek and heads off towards the bathroom. I use the time to gather up all my clothes and redress myself.

Whatever we did last night must've been crazy though. Holy shit, I mean how in the world did some of my clothes end up in the places I find them at? My shirt looks like it was used to punch a hole in the window, my pants are in the fridge?! Gods and my boots are tied to the ceiling flan blades.

If I were to guess, then either drunk Reyna or me put them there so that way they 'would look like they're walking'.

Whatever. I snatch them from the fan and get myself all dressed up and ready for the trip back home. Now that I've hopefully shown that I'm a worthwhile ally by winning the tournament I need to refocus back on the Mori issue.

In my dream I was visited by the last remnant of her uncorrupted consciousness, she pleaded with me to forget about her and continue on, but that shit isn't going to happen. I really did enjoy myself with Reyna, and maybe in another life we could've has something. But I'm married, and my wife needs my help exorcising the Titan controlling her.

Mori believes she can no longer be separated from the Titan, I however beg to differ. Not to stroke my own dick, but I'm a fucking genius. If I can turn people into immortals just by giving making them where three articles of clothing, then I know I'm capable of safely removing a spirit from Mori.

The biggest worry I have is what I'm going to do about Luna. As crazy as it sounds, the supposed faded Titaness has returned in some capacity and possessed my wife. A second-generation Titan, especially one who is the manifestation of the Moon is no easy combatant.

Perhaps Artemis will help me then since Luna can challenge her for control over dominion of the moon? No, she probably wouldn't. If it was the Titan Selene then maybe, according to my mother Helios and Selene were great friends with Artemis and Apollo. It's the reason why they were trusted with taking control of their respected domains after Romans stopped worshipping the Titans twins.

I still need to talk more with Selene when I get the chance, her connection to Luna is… _unique_ , and if I'm going to fight her I need to understand their history better.

Whatever, I'm thinking too hard right now. First thing that needs to happen is I have to actually find where she actually is. I have the state she's in thanks to some passing information from my mother and Dionysus, but seeing that Alaska is basically a country in size by itself I still don't have much going my way.

Thankfully my Dodona Orb is still in my possession, it's clairvoyance powers will be invaluable with my search for Mori's exact location. If not, then it will lead me to where I can find answers. Prophets are very enigmatic, more often then not their answers lead you where you need to be in roundabout ways.

"Aaaaagh!"

I'm pulled out of my thoughts by Reyna screaming in the bathroom. The door opens and Reyna marches out with an angry expression on her face. I raise an eyebrow at her and she shakes her head angrily and points back into the bathroom.

Peter, whom is wearing only underwear, yawns lazily and leans against the door. His milky eyes blink a few times and he gives Reyna and I a lopsided grin.

"Hey, what's up? Damn you really know how to party Samson!"

"What can I say? I grew up in the sixties, people knew what a _real_ party was like back then."

"Damn straight! Holy shit that was fun last night!"

Reyna coughs angrily into her fist and glares at Peter, "Sorry to break up your little… _bro fest_ , but what the Pluto are you doing sleeping in the bathtub!?"

"Oh that? No idea honestly, just kinda migrated there after last night's little session. Man that was crazy, never thought a threesome would be so awesome!"

She sputters a few times before her face goes blank for a minute, lost in thought as she tries processing what happened last night.

"We didn't… I didn't… oh gods, not again!"

"Again? Damn Reyna, what kind of party's have you been to before?"

"The Roman kinds. Whatever, just what the hell Peter?! I don't remember you at all last night!"

He gives her a mocking hurt look, "Okay, ouch. I was working the back door actually, probably never saw my face or something. I have to say that hurts a little, I worked really hard last night!"

Reyna grabs her shoe and throws it, smacking Peter right in the face.

"I'm not in the mood for jokes! Gods my ass is killing me. Grab your shit and get out of here! I don't want another lecture about 'safe sex' from the virgin party we call a Senate if someone finds out about this!"

Peter rolls his eyes and gets bashed by another shoe. I say my goodbyes to the both of them and head outside. I had fun here in New Rome and Camp Jupiter, but I've still got business to attend to.

* * *

Holy shit, New Rome is _wrecked._

People are passed out everywhere and in random places. Almost all of them either have no clothes or wear only a little, Terminus's little statue body is even laying on its side while he snores loudly. Also, what the fuck is with the giant wolf thing?!

Said wolf opens a massive eye and glares at me for a second before it closes and the beast starts snoring loudly.

Goddamn, this place is fucked up.

I step over, and occasionally on, people as I make my way to the shitty parking lot. It's impressive looking at the damage this place has suffered from the party last night.

Windows are shattered, and crap is thrown everywhere in the streets. It looks like a war came through here, there's even a fire somewhere since I can see smoke off in the distance. Yup, I think it's about time for me to get out of here.

Just as I'm about to head to my van, I suddenly hear a voice call out from behind me.

"Hey, Samson! Hold on for a moment!"

I spin around and find myself pleasantly surprised to see Blake jogging up to me. He's not wearing his fancy at the moment, and it surprises me greatly to see him looking… well looking normal really. Blake's always had a certain air of authority and no nonsense about him.

To me, he honestly felt kind of stuff and generally kind of an ass. I suppose that's how Roman are supposed to be, so I guess I should give him the benefit of the doubt.

He jogs up to me and hands me a small package wrapped in cloth, "Here, before you leave. Amos-sorry, the Gargarean King wanted you to have it after he left. He said it belonged to you a long time ago, and that it would be helpful later on."

That's… interesting to say the least. So, this 'Amos' is the current Gargarean king? I wonder why he has an interest in me, and what item is it he's returning to me?

I can barely hold back a gasp as I unveil the wrappings contents. I take the object in a shaky hand and observe its familiar details.

A six-sided sterling silver hand mirror, like a fancy one you would see woman with in the nineteen fifties. The once shining and reflective silver metal is tarnished, the years staining the metal with a dark, almost black color.

Most people would look at this object and think nothing of it, but I know differently. After all, I made this almost fifty years ago. I touch the reflective glass, magic prickling lightly at my fingers as though it were happy to be back in my hands.

"This is my old mirror, I only ever made a couple of them. I… I never thought I would see one again."

"Yes, they're quite rare pieces. This was originally in the ownership of the Amazon's; their queen gave it to Amos not long ago. And now it returns to its original owner."

His mismatched eyes look around for a second before he sighs and rubs the back of his head.

"Look, I just want to say I'm sorry. I've been kind of a dick to you and that's not cool," He extends his hand out to me, "So what do you say? Start over and try and be friends?"

I reach out and take his hand with a smile on my face, "Sure thing, friends."

"Good, good. Listen, there's something you need to know. I'm not sure if this applies to you, but our intelligence suggests there's four places in the lower fourth eight that strengthens someone we call 'The Witch in the North'. We've discovered this unknown person is specifically targeting those with information regarding 'The Mystic.' They run four businesses that act as forward operating bases for their private army of monsters and runaway demigods. I've heard rumors of dark things happening in these hidden bases, my scouts are reporting monsters like they've never seen before. Be careful from here on out, this identity is powerful and very influential."

Ah shit, 'The Witch in the North' is certainly Mori considering her location somewhere in Alaska. What worries me even more is that, according to Blake, she's causing some kind of stir regarding monsters. That and she own four bases somewhere in the lower states.

Fuck, this crap is getting dicey! I sigh morosely and shake my head, if I want to get to Mori then I need to go through these bases first. I doubt Olympus would be happy if I only took the head off of this organization without destroying it completely.

"Thank you, Blake, I appreciate the warning. I'm likely not to come back to Jupiter for a while, but I really enjoyed my time here. Feel free to give my Grand Champion title to someone else, I'm retired from the arena."

Blake raises a hand and shakes his head, "We can find another champion, but continue calling yourself our Grand Champion. You've earned that title, no one can take it from you. Stay safe Samson, come around some time okay?"

He spins on his heels and walks away further into the city. I look at my mirror and spin it around a few times. I think… it's time I head home.

* * *

As much as I wanted to use my mirror to get home in just a couple of seconds, I still have a van. Hmm, I wonder if there's some way to take a van with me through the mirror? Maybe I can use a Mistform card? Shit that's a whole other thing since they're incredibly hard to get ahold of.

I'm somewhere in Ohio on the highway when a scent of smoke starts to fill my van. I'm half a second away from yelling at Laila and Horse when I see black smoke out in the forest to my left. Something feels odd, so I pull off into a gas station parking lot and stand with a crowd being held back by a few state troopers.

I step up to one of the officers who was giving me a shifty look. He has a big bushy beard and is acting very skittish. He quickly tips his hat and shows me two little horns in his burly hair. He's a satyr?

"Psst," He whispers and motions me over to the back of a police car, "Mystic! Thank goodness you're here! Listen, the Nymph's here need your help!"

"Alright, what's going on? I'm guessing it has something to do with that fire back there. A loose fire breathing horse maybe?"

"No, nothing so simple I'm afraid. There's a huge Drakon going on a rampage out there! I don't know where it came from or why it's burning the forest, but it's hunting all the nature spirits out here!"

I sigh and pinch the bridge of my nose. Gods, why can't I go anywhere without something bad happening? A loose Drakon huh? Well, it's good that it's a fire breathing incidentally. Thanks to my jacket I'm completely fireproof, so the biggest danger comes from well… everything else about it.

"…Fine, I'll handle it. Can you tell me anything about this thing? Size, weaknesses? Literally any useful information will come in handy here."

He scratches at his arm nervously and looks all around, avoiding eye contact with me. Huh, that's… _suspicious._

"I only saw it in passing, but it's _huge!_ I think it's at least a hundred feet long, lots of cracked and missing scales, _big_ teeth and horns-"

"-Relevant information please. Color and teeth size does not add much. I need more things like what you said about chipped scales. So please, _something_ relevant!"

"U-um, yes, um… well, it has lots of spears and stuff lodged in its back."

"Oh?"

"Y-yeah! A Nymph told me it has tons of really old and cool weapons stuck in it. Maybe you can bat them in with a club or something? I don't know, that's about everything I have on it!"

"Well, if that's all then I must be off. Keep the mortals safe, I'm going to try and draw it away but I can't promise much. I'm counting on you."

I pat his should and move passed him, heading towards the forest and the smoke out in the distance. Before I reach the tree line he suddenly calls out to me.

"Mystic! Before you go… be careful out there. Forests are not… _safe."_

I give him a strange look, but he puts his sunglasses on and goes back to managing the small crowds, Curious, he knows something. Hmm, there's a potential that this is a trap. I honestly should just get in my van and go but… I just can't.

If there's a Drakon going on the loose out there, then it will certainly go a long way in gaining some favor from Artemis when I ask for my pardons. That and it's also an obligation of mine. Years ago I was called 'Friend of the Nymphs' by a nature spirit, a tittle not given out lightly to demigods.

Oh fuck me, this is going to _suck._

* * *

The scent of smoke progressively becomes more and more unbearable the closer I trek towards the fire. Even though I'm still immune to fire, smoke still can affect me.

Every so often I have to cast a minor wind spell to blow smoke out of my way. This is also spreading my scent around however. Any hope for a sneak attack is basically gone at this point, Drakon's have an excellent sense of smell.

I step into a fiery inferno and pass my way through, being completely unaffected the whole way. A few minutes of traversing burning forest and I end up in a black and charred section of the forest. Since the fire has already spread through nothing burns out here, only the short remains of blackened trees are left.

Man, Smaug has really done a number on this place.

The blackened tree line opens up after a few minutes' walk to a completely barren field. All trees in the area have been leveled by something, completely mashed into the ground.

The scent of smoke out here is really awful, making it very hard to breathe. If there's ever a place to fight him, it's going to be here.

I drop down to one knee and clasp my hands, reciting a small prayer of magic. As I finish my spell, a strong gust of wind blows from the north, pushing the lingering smoke away and allowing me to breathe in the area significantly better.

Whelp, if the Drakon didn't know where I was before, he certainly will now. I rise from my kneeling and take my new axe in hand. I acquired this for the purpose of using it against heavy armor, and Drakon's are well know for having powerful and resilient scales.

That and the spearpoint spike on the tip will be very useful as a makeshift piercing weapon. Hmm, now what sort of spells will be handy against this thing? Last time Steven used fire grenades against the Drakon we fought in the junkyard, but that was an acid spitting monster, it's insides being highly flammable because of its biology.

This beast will be the opposite. Being a fire breather, it almost certainly has a resistance or even immunity to flames.

I suppose all I can do magic wise is Magic Arrow and Magic Spear, a piercing shaft of magic light essentially with different weights behind each. Magic arrow is fast an light, good for unarmored foes. Magic Spear is heavy but slow. It'll pierce deeper, but a quick enemy can dodge it no problem.

Those two might be fairly useful in different opportunities, but neither are good for piercing heavy armor of Drakons. Actually… if I can pry a scale off or aim for the missing scales the Satyr mention, my axe and Magic Arrow will be unbelievable handy against it.

 _Doom._

The floor shakes lightly.

 _Doom._

There it is again. Something evil and ancient roars out in the distance, the sheer sound shaking the ground.

Whelp, my quarry knows I'm here. Maybe I'll get some answers out of it, figure out a reason why something as powerful as this is all the way out here.

 _Crack! Smash!_

The distant trees crackle and topple over in the distance, looking out through the fire in the distance I can see a shadow slowly crawling towards me. Like the Devil emerging from Hell, a fierce face full of scars with one foggy eye emerges from the flames.

Horns point high into the sky, smoke spills from its maw full of sword sized teeth, the Drakon has arrived.

Fear prickles along the back of my neck, this thing… it is not a simple enemy.

 _Ignis, the Wretched Abyss Walker._

Words not of my own ring through my mind. Who was that? Definitely an Olympian, that's for sure. Artemis maybe? Or even my own mother?

Either way, Olympus is watching me right now, another trial to prove myself. Whelp, I better give them a good show. Killing this thing will hopefully go a long way with earning a pardon for Mori and Myself. Now I wonder… will this thing drop a trophy? Annabeth has a sword made of Drakon bone, maybe it'll drop a tooth?

How cool would that be?! I could make something epic with a Drakon tooth!

The beast slams a claw into the ground and rears its head up and roars high into the sky, a cry of blood so vicious and primal that I'm reminded of Pan's legendary scream.

Iridescent scales twinkle in the faint light peeking through the smoke, the one good eye turning to me with familiarity.

No… it couldn't be… This Drakon, it's the same one I fought with my brothers years ago! The poisonous beast that essentially got my brother killed by Cacus!

After fifty years… my oldest foe has finally returned to try and kill me. But why? And how? Drakons are smart, but they're still beasts. Only through manipulation by an outside force could they… be… sent after… someone.

Blake… he warned me about this. Mori's reach is powerful, and he was right! Only she knows this creature is something I hate the most, that's almost certainly the reason why i'm having this meeting right now! But how has it changed from breathing acid to fire?

Maybe when monsters like this reform in Tartarus they can change minor things about themselves? I have heard that Drakons are know for their adaptability, so I suppose it's fair enough for it to switch its abilities out for others.

I can't stop myself from grinning. With Juggernaut on, I've essentially limited its major ability to being completely ineffective!

Ignis rears back and throws its head forward, a torrent of orange fire exploding outwards and washing over me. I close my eyes and brace myself, the weight of the flames actually pushing me backwards and almost throwing me to my feet!

The monster's good eye widens before narrowing as a growl escapes from its maw. Looks like it knows I'm immune to its fire! With the way the beast is glaring at me, it's fairly easy to guess that he remembers me.

Good, I want this fucker to remember me when I send it back to the depths of hell!

The beast is many hundreds of yards away from me as it slowly and carefully crawls after me. Looks like it remembers charging at me like last time didn't end so well for it. I use the time and distance between us to examine the scales along its body, searching for the weak spots the Satyr told me about.

It's belly and sides are completely fine, not a single scratch on its reflective scales. But the back near the spine? That's an entirely different story. Spears, swords, Halberds, many weapons are lodged in the missing patches of scales along its back, giving it the faint impression of a porcupine with weapons for spikes.

Something gold shines from the mess of weapons stuck into it. Deep in the center of the maze of weapons is a golden cross-guard spear, traces of magic humming from it and reaching out to me like a beacon.

I don't know what it is about it, but for some reason I'm drawn to the mysterious weapon. Whatever it is, I think it's the key to defeating Ignis.

Speaking of which, the beast has come within a hundred feet of me, and instead of charging the three-hundred-foot monster circles around me like a shark. It's good eye glares at me with caution and hate as I keep a reasonable dodging distance from its claws and teeth.

Our dance of death finally kicks off when Ignis rears a clawed hand up and tries to squash me like a fly. The attack was very telegraphed, so I quickly raced forward and rolled away as the heavy hand crashes down into the dirt.

I look up and sprint away again as Ignis brings his chest down to smash me. Fuck, I forgot he does that! Ignis swipes at me with his hand, and I quickly jump up with all my might and grab his arm as it collides with me. The air is thrown from my lungs, but I manage to keep my grip on it! The beast grumbles in displeasure and starts swinging his arm around wildly, attempting to throw me off. My grip holds, but just barely. The Drakon stops trying to shake me off and claws at his arm with his other claw.

Before I'm grinned into bits, I throw my axe out and aim for the eye. Ignis sees this happen and quickly closes its scaled eyelid, my axe bouncing off and falling to the ground somewhere. Using the opportunity, I clamper up Ignis's shoulder and climb into the mess of weapons on his back.

The beast rears his heavy head up and glares at me, trying his hardest to reach around and bite me. Thankfully his body is shaped more like a reptile then a serpent, his neck being to short to reach around hardly at all.

I smirk at the best and stomp on a sword lodged halfway into his skin, only to hiss as it feels like I'm trying to stomp a sword into solid stone!

Fuck, his skin is too thick! I doubt even razor could cut the hide on his back! No wonder all these weapons are stuck half in, no one in the past fifty years could actually get a weapon all the way through Ignis's skin.

Something hums in my mind, drawing my attention away from the struggling beast. Slowly I turn and look at the golden spear in the center of the forest of weapons. Faint magic sings at me, beckoning me forth.

I shimmy through the mess and arrive at the weapon, completely entranced by some unknown magic affecting me. The weapon is elegant yet powerful, the whole thing being just a few inches taller than I am.

Taking it in my hands, I pull the spear free from the skin with ease, claiming the Excalibur spear for myself. The shaft is golden, a wide and thin cross-guard being the transition into a polished steel spearhead.

I tap the blade and wince as yellow electricity cracks out and zaps my finger. It's an enchanted spear! Oh, this is going to be _very_ useful!

Ignis roars so loud I'm forced to cover my ears, and with my faltering attention he shakes his whole body violently like a dog and throws me off. I crash into the burned earth with a heavy thud, my head and ears ringing from the impact.

My legs shake and wobble lightly as I stand, and for some reason Ignis didn't attack me in my dazed state. My vision clears up and the sight of my foe seemingly cowering and slowly retreating away being something I never expected from a legendary monster like this!

The strange voice suddenly echoes into my head as I examine the seemingly radiant weapon in my hands.

 _The Dragon Slayer Spear. The weapon of an ancient bane of all Dragon kind._

I grin and twirl the spear around, remembering the lessons Thalia taught me when we were in the arena. I end my little show and point it at Ignis, a sense of self-assurance washing over me.

Last time I fought this monster I was a scared boy. But now? Now I'm no longer afraid!

This is for William you son of a bitch!


	52. Chapter 52

**A/N: Yup, he's back. Back again. Samson's first super enemy is back for round two, a big ass Drakon with an attitude problem. Good thing Ornstein's spear is available to him, probably the only reason he can beat that thing solo now. Yeah, his new spear is totally just the Dragon Slayer spear from Dark Souls ported into this story. Don't look at me like that, I like the games, even number two.**

* * *

 _With Samson, spring 2011_

Ignis eyes me carefully as it makes a fair amount of difference between us, heavy feet stomping felled logs straight into the ground. I spin my new spear around in my hands and get a feel for the weight of the weapon.

It's wonderfully balanced, surprisingly light in my hands for how long it is. The design and length of the spear is definitely medieval European in design, maybe ninth century if I were to guess. The elongated cross-guard at the shaft beneath the spear point is a design I'm not familiar with however. Now that I'm looking at it, if I converted the spear so the shaft shortens I could totally use it as another sword.

I haven't duel wielded weapons since my first quest, I think going back to that would be fun. Axe and spear that shifts into a smaller sword? Heck yeah man, that would be awesome! Gods, I'm a fucking nerd, aren't I?

Gods My fighting style changes on a whim I swear.

Ignis slams a clawed foot onto the ground and roars in rage, stomping over the landscape and charging at me.

Crap, I keep getting lost in thought in dangerous situations again!

I grip my new spear and charge the furious murder gecko in return. It's better to be active rather reactive against an opponent like this, if I'm forced on the defensive from an enemy as big as this I'd likely get killed in minutes.

If I can lead Ignis around in the fight I'd be using my smaller size as an advantage and slowly whittle his defenses down. Having the reach of this spear will be invaluable with it as well!

Ignis lunges at me when he's within range, going to smash me into the ground with his fist like a hammer. I use the momentum of my sprint and quickly roll past his fist, staggering from the shockwave but still recovering in time to bring my spear and stab it into the underside of his wrist.

My eyes practically bulge out of my sockets as the spear glides straight through the thick scales like a hot knife through butter. Holy shit, no wonder it's called the Dragonslayer's spear! This thing just slid through those scales with minimal effort, Ignis is fucked now!

I yank the spear free and quickly roll away just before Ignis slams his whole arm onto the ground. I turn to stab at his arm, but his arm lashes out and smacks me away like a fly!

I'm sent spiraling a distance away, but thankfully I'm not to injured from being bashed like this. Having immortal blood has made me significantly sturdier then when I was mortal. Still, that blood didn't help me much when Lanius was thrashing me back in the arena! Gods that dude is freakishly strong, glad I'm done fighting him.

The ground shakes like an earthquake as I finally stop rolling across the ground. It takes some effort to rise back to my feet, but I do so with enough time to see Ignis is a fair distance from me. I take the time while he's charging to plan out the fight some more.

I can try and slap my spear against his scales all I want, but the kill shot on him will be through the brain like an alligator. That means I need to get to his back somehow. Great, going back up there will be so fun.

Ignis's sword-sized teeth lash out, his huge maw crushing the ground and trying to scoop me up. Quickly I jab the spear into the point of his snout, holding on with all my might as the Drakon's head rears back up with me dangling from the spear lodged into him.

His good eye glares at me as I dangle. I smile and give him a little, Ignis's eyelids squint at me with a glare in return. I extend my one hand out quickly and my axe flies back into it. I throw it at Ignis's good eye before he can shake me off. He closes his eye lid, the hard skin deflecting my axe causing it to bounce off, but I wasn't trying to blind him!

I use the second's distraction to climb up to the top of his head, yanking my spear free and running up the of his head. Ignis starts to shift beneath me. Fuck, he knows Where I'm at!

The Drakon roars and starts shaking his head around, I stab my spear into the top of his head and hold on tight. The monster shrieks in pain and shakes even more then before! Gods I think I'm gonna hurl.

A shadow looms over me and I look up to see his huge clawed hand coming down to grind me to bits off of him. I rip my spear free and jab it into the palm, the weight and speed of his hand traveling shoving the spear even deeper then I could by myself.

My foe roars out in fury tearing the spear from my grip as his hand retreats. I curse as I watch him take my spear away, but quickly turn around and run for the side of his with his good eye. My axe flies back into my hand just as I bring them up. I stand on the bridge of his good eye and swing my axe down. Ignis's eye squishes as my eye carves deeply into it, nasty juice and blood pouring from the cut as the huge monster screams in agony and fury.

The other hand comes up to cup the eye, almost squishing me as I dodge backwards on the head. I peek at the opposite hand and see my spear is still lodged into its hand. Dammit, I need to get that back somehow!

I run down the neck and into the mess of weapons stuck into the back, striking the softer scale-less skin with my axe. I make some nice cuts along the skin, but even with a magically enhanced axe I don't make anywhere near of a deep cut like I did with my spear.

Ignis punches his fist into the ground and starts shaking his whole body like a dog. I grip onto the handle of a random weapon and hold one, my vision going funny from the sheer speed of the twisting body.

Suddenly the handle jolts a little bit. I grip another handle but that one was even looser, with a final twist the weapon is dislodged with me still holding it!

I'm sent flying a distance away, crashing into a few hard logs and rolling several feet after. I cough out a few spits of golden blood and push myself back up. Ignis is completely enraged now, the Drakon is blowing fire in huge masses everywhere and stomping his paws into the ground and ripping up huge chunks of the earth.

I groan and stretch my arms out a bit, trying to clear out the soreness in them. Damn this is fun!

Thankfully Ignis is blinded physically and is mental blinded by rage. The big lizard is so mad he even stomped the paw with my spear into the ground, shoving the thing all the way through. If I can get on that paw, I can rip the thing out probably!

The tricky thing will be getting on the top of it somehow. Ignis can't see anymore, and as far as I know Drakon's hearing isn't that great. Still, now that he's blinded it could be like the thing with humans? His hearing might improve now that he can't see.

Enough thinking about things, I've got a Drakon to kill!

I start sprinting towards Ignis, getting myself in a good position so I can jump up on his claw. He brings his stabbed hand up and smashes down on the burned dirt, making a deep crater from his might alone. Now's my chance!

His hand comes up slowly and I throw my self up and grab the scales, swinging my legs wildly while I climb to the top. I lunge forward and grab my spear just in time as Ignis brings his claw down again to smash the dirt.

My vision goes blurry from being jolted so violently downwards, but I keep my grip on the handle. There's a slight moment when the Drakon brings his hand up to smash it down that I could jump from his hand to the head. It's barely a second, but that's all I need really.

The claw comes back into the air, my feet wobbling from the movement but gripping the spear still stuck in his flesh helps me stay stable. I feel it peak at a certain altitude, Now! I rip spear violently from the flesh, taking some minor chunks out with me and lunging down from the hand.

I aim my small descent for the center point of his crown, turning my spear point downwards for an unbelievably sick and epic downwards thrust.

Metal slides through scale, flesh, bone and some more as I impact onto his head. My foe _screams_ a feral roar of rage, but I give him no discourse and focus on the magic enchantment of my spear. Yellow electricity surges down the handle and into the blade, thankfully I'm not electrocuted by it but my quarry isn't so lucky.

With a direct connection directly into Ignis's nervous system, the coursing electricity overlords his entire body, making him spaz out and release some pretty hilarious noises. I keep the current going for almost a whole minute, the Drakon doing nothing as his motor control goes completely shot.

Despite the immense strength of the electricity, Ignis shows his impressive might by suddenly throwing his upper body high into the air. The current stops and I cry out as his back, also my floor for the moment, goes vertical. I look down and see the ground racing towards me.

This fucker wants to squish me!

I yoink my spear out and kick off his back, throwing my open hand out and launching a minor Sunburst that pushes me midair and well away from being squished when the Drakon slams his back into the ground.

The both of us slam into the ground simultaneously, I lose my breath on impact, but I know Ignis has had it much worse. My foe groans in displeasure as the scattered weapons stabbed into his back are shoved full-length into his back. Many wedged into the crooks of his vertebrae are forced in and sever the nerves between each, effectively paralyzing the monster from the shoulders down.

A few moments of regaining my breath and I'm back to my feet, balancing my possibly bruised thigh with my spear and looking out at the defeated and undignified form of one of my oldest enemies. The milky white eye I thought was blinded turns and looks at me.

Guess he can see a little bit from it? I approach Ignis, spear gripped tight as I stand right by his massive eye. The white cloudy eye meets my gaze, both of us starring the other down for a few moments before the draconic eyelid closes down.

Slowly with a dramatic crawl, his body begins to turn a sandy gold color, the telltale sign of a dead Greek monster. The entire body becomes golden and the breeze only barely blows it away. I extend my hand out and blast a gust of telekinetic energy at the head, blowing it away in the wind where the rest of the body follows along with it.

I'm sorry I couldn't save you back then, William. If only… if only I was strong enough.

It's almost morbid watching the body of one of my greatest foes fade away into nothing. A strange feeling washes over, nostalgia of all kinds, good and bad, permeates me. It's uncanny almost, have I really become stronger? When I was a child it took two of my brothers and myself to kill this thing the first time, but now I've done it solo. If only my brothers were here now... we all could've took this world by storm.

Steven, William, Richard, Thomas... I'm... I'm... ah, just forget it. Gods, it's been so long, i should've been over this by now!

Something shiny and rainbow glows from a small remnant of the body. I walk over and dig it free, holding it up in the air and letting the sunlight parting the clouds illuminate it.

It's another scale, like the one I sacrificed to Artemis years ago. I could give this to another god, maybe even earn some good favor from them too? I think I'll be keeping this, however, a keepsake and some evidence for a story I'll tell someone another day.

I do have a display room in my Palace, this will be perfect for it!

My axe flies back into my hand and I hook it on to my belt loop. I spin around and start heading back towards my van. Gods I just want to be back in camp already.

* * *

I've been taking it easy since killing Ignis. That Satyr I met was long gone by the time I got back, guess he had something better to do? I'm still warry about him, he was very shifty when we first met.

Also, someone's been tailing me since killing Ignis. It was subtle at first, a slight sense of emotion from another being when I was walking back from the battle grounds but looking in the mirror I see the same sedan has stayed a consistent three cars behind me no matter what speeds I travel at.

Every gas stop I rest at the car is in a parking space within view of me at all times. The windows are tinted, so I can't see much inside, but I make out the shadows of three people.

Assassins, maybe? Spies? Intelligence gatherers for Mori? I have no clue. Whomever they are they're pretty bad at their job. Hell, they almost ran me over by accident one time when I was walking back to my van. I know it was because the people inside freaked out and quickly hauled ass away.

It's been kind of fun messing with them too. Every so often I'll sneak up on the car and tap on the windows, pretending to be a homeless man demanding money. Other times I'll just flip them off when I know they're watching.

As fun as this little game has been, it has to come to an end at some point. I stop at some dingy off the road gas station in Virginia, gathering up some shitty tacos for lunch when I hear the door ring and three sets of boots marching up to me at the checkout counter.

The attendant gulps and puts their hand in the air, sweat trickling down their head as his eyes shift nervously. Fuck, guess they're assassins after all?

"Turn around, Mystic, look at me. Hands in the air! And no funny business!"

A shotgun cocks behind me and I sigh dramatically. Gods can I ever travel literally anywhere in peace?

I spin around and face the assailants behind me. First impressions from them? Not impressed at all. There's three of them, all average looking Americans with brilliant colored eyes only demigods can possess.

One has bright blue eyes, the other a pretty brown, an the last a faded baby blue color. Children of Apollo, Demeter and Hermes respectively. Each looks maybe twenty, but they all have outdated military weapons.

Is that a Russian military shotgun? Damn, those are vintage! At least they were back in my day, people have all kinds of working recreations nowadays.

Their gear is surprisingly light seeing as how they look like surfer dudes rather then assassins. Though I guess they're trying to blend in. Still, huge weapons like that draws too much attention, they should have gone with pistols or knives.

The lead man, the Hermes boy with a shotgun levels it with my eyes and gives me a threatening look.

"Good, now that we have your attention you will do as I say, or I'll blast your brains and paint these walls a new shade of red!"

"I have gold blood, amateur."

"…What did you say to me?"

His voice is low, obviously attempting to sound threatening.

"If you did your research, then you'd know I have golden blood. You know? Ichor? Gods you need to work on this some more, I know a thirteen-year-old better at armed robbery then you three together."

The boys laugh and brandish their weapons at me some more. I peek at the attendant in the reflection of the window and see him eyeing his own shotgun hidden under the counter. Excellent, he's got a good head on his shoulders.

"Do you even know who we are? We're the most infamous group of assassins' in this world! Our name strikes fear into all! Our ancestors even started one of the greatest wars ever witnessed by man! Cower worm, for your fate is in the grasp of the mighty _Black Hand!"_

"Wait… the same guys from World War One? Oh I'm shaking! Ha! Dude, you guys suck! It was what, three failed attempts before your man got lucky and shot the Archduke when he wanted to get lunch or something right? Hey, did you guys know you were in a 'video game'?"

The Hermes boy's smile falters and his eyes narrow.

"Don't you dare, don't you _fucking_ dare bring that up! We had the name first! That stupid game stole all the glory from us! Fuck Bethesda! They've ruined our name!"

"I don't know, I think they've done better with it then you tools have. Did you try suing?"

"NO! WE'RE AN ASSASSIN'S GROUP! WHY THE HADES WOULD WE SUE IF WE'RE TRYING TO STAY UNDERGROUND!?"

"Because you're fucking idiots. NOW CARLOS!"

I duck under as the attendant, a nice older man named Carlos, swings his gun up from under the counter and blasts the Hermes boy, pellets smacking into his shoulder while the others catch the Demeter boy in his waist.

The Apollo kid curses and unloads his Uzi at Carlos who yells 'Puta!' in Spanish and ducks under his counter just before the flurry of bullets can kill him. I kick off the counter and tackle the boy to the ground, wrestling with him for control over the gun.

He brings his knee up and smashes my balls, causing me to instantly vomit all over his face. He pushes me off while I cough wildly, screaming 'gross' and trying to wipe the throw up off. I ignore the pure agony and wobble awkwardly over and kick his gun away to the other side of the room.

The Demeter boy clutches his bleeding side with one arm and points his automatic rifle at me and pulls the trigger. One or two bullets bounce off Juggernaut, at most forming small bruises, but the recoils causes him to lose control and make the gun shoot up into the air and fill the ceiling full of bullet hole.

A weak chunk of ceiling tile falls off and hits the boy on the head, causing him to flinch and drop his gun where it goes off accidentally and shoots the Apollo boy three times in his leg.

"AGHH! FUCKING CHRIST RICKY!"

"Shit! Sorry man!"

"FUCK YOU!"

I race towards the Hermes boy and drop kick him in the chest, shoving him through the glass sliding door of a refrigerator and causing him to smash dozens of glass beer bottles. He screams in pain as dozens of shards stab into his back, so I use the time to grab the barrel of his gun and swing it at his head. I club him over the noggin and his eyes roll back as he falls unconscious.

The Hermes boy behind me groans and points a pistol he was hiding at me before I can react. His shoulder is mangled to hell, and I can tell he's on the brink of passing out.

"Y-you fuck! This was our big break! We weren't even trying to kill you; our orders were to capture alive!"

"Yeah? Well, you're doing a pretty good job. I'm guessing Mori hired you? That's the only person still alive whose shit list I'm on. Well… maybe Zeus, but we're working on it."

The boy gives me a weird look, "What… the fuck is wrong with you? Like, what the actual fuck?"

"Meh, I'm eccentric. Right Carlos?"

A shotgun cocks behind me as Carlos points it at the Hermes bastard, "Si, senior!"

He pulls the trigger and blasts the kid again, shredding the already messed up shoulder but thankfully sparing his life. The boy crumples to the ground, writhing in pain while hot tears leak down and mix with his blood pooling across the floor.

I walk over to him and force a bottle of nectar I carry in my back pocket down his throat, the wounds on his shoulder slowly healing while the spilling blood coagulates. I should've just let this kid die, but he's bound to have some intel if he's an assassin hired by Mori.

Carlos comes around the counter and wrinkles his nose in displeasure, poking the unconscious Hermes boy and watching with interest while his body heals.

"Mierda, what a puta! How is he healing? Are you a mago?"

"Si, I am," I open up my magic wallet and take out one hundred-hundred dollar bills and pass them on to Carlos.

"Think you can stay quiet and I'll take the boys with me? I say nothing, you say nothing?"

"For a hundred g's? Boss, you've got yourself a deal. Think you can pass a few thousand more for some quiet repairs?"

I pull out another three thousand and pass it to Carlos, the older man pocketing it with a smile. I start dragging the bodies and tossing them in a room in my house. Laila props herself against the doorway, eating ice-cream from the tub while I tie all the boys up to heavy chairs.

"Soooo… have a fun day?"

"Kinda? Fought a legendary Drakon, got kicked in the balls-" She laughs at my misfortune, "-and got attacked by three shitty Black Hand Assassins."

"From the video game? Goddamn, what a bunch of nerds. So, what are we gonna do? Torture? Oh! Let me get my kit before we start! I've got this spike sounding rod, you can grab their dicks and I'll shove-"

"Please, gods no! We can talk about it after they wake up! Damn, what the Hades dude?"

She shrugs her shoulders and goes back to shoveling ice-cream into her mouth. I roll my eyes and finish tying up the new prisoners.

I stand up and huff. Damn, I hope Chiron doesn't get mad when I bring these guys back to camp!


	53. Chapter 53

**A/N: Uh-oh, Samson's got himself a band of assassins as prisoners. Hopefully Chiron won't be mad about that, lol nah he totally is. We're back at camp now, and that means he's reuniting himself with his old quest buddies. There'll be some big bombs being dropped finally this chapter, so get yourself ready for that.**

* * *

 _With Samson, spring 2011_

"You're not mad, right?"

"…"

"It's only for a minute, I swear! I'll throw them out after I get some intel from them."

"…"

"…Sure you're not mad?"

Chiron clears his throat and sighs deeply, running a hand through his hair while Mr. D sips on a coke and watches me neutrally.

"I am rather… displeased, Samson, bringing prisoners into camp grounds represents a great risk to camper safety. I would much appreciate it if you would consult me first before doing actions such as this."

"Right, I'll keep it in mind later. Thank you, Chiron, so what should we do about the prisoners? They have knowledge from Mori most likely, do we have some kind of interrogation room? Maybe a camper who can… convince them?"

He looks away in thought, idly stroking his beard, "We'll try speaking with them cordially first, violence is something I wish to avoid if we can. Bring them to the basement of the Big House, I'll set up a table for them. Come back in an hour, we may begin then."

I nod at him and head back outside of the Big House. I stop at the top steps and look out across the camp, taking a deep breath and smiling at the fond overlook. Campers of all ages run around, young demigods happily going about their days with a joyful smile.

It's nostalgic being back here, seeing little glimpses of myself in the faces of all these new campers. I think after I'm done with everything I'll see if I can find a job here. Maybe I'll be an armorer? I can't help but chuckle at the imagery.

A young god living in a van palace that aspiring heroes go to for special equipment. Gods I can see the surprise on their faces already when Chiron sends them to a van.

But enough with the dreaming, I've got some assassins to interrogate.

* * *

The basement is exceptionally dark when I hand the boys off to Chiron and surprisingly Mr. D, the Olympian being here to pass on the information we learn to the rest of the council. It seems even Olympus is worried about the potential discord Mori could unleash if she's completely unhinged.

Also, for some reason, Laila's here with us too. She's uncharacteristically happy about this, she's even brought that gods forsaken 'toolkit' with her. Along the way to the Big House she opened it up and showed me the stuff she has in there as well as describing their uses.

Yeah, I'm still kind of fucked up from that.

"For the last time Laila, we're not using a spiked sounding rod on them!"

"Oh come on, why not? Just do it to them and they'll tell you everything! I've done it before and let me tell you, a quarter inch in and they'll be flapping their lips in no time!"

"I agree with the snake-bitch, torture goes a long way in interrogations."

"Mr. D," Chiron scolds, wagging a finger at him like a mom, "Camp is to maintain integrity and a PG 13 rating at all times! Such graphic content is far too violent for our younger campers."

"I've seen some of these brats torn to shreds less then a year ago, but I guess _PG 13_ makes total sense then. Whatever, let Braniac talk them into insanity, that's PG, right?"

Laila and Mr. D huff and stand off to the side while I approach the tied up and gagged boys. The Hermes boy was the leader, so if he folds then the other two will.

I remove the sock I wedged into his mouth and pull up one of those cheap plastic chairs you buy from Walmart and sit across from him. My charge is completely silent, eyes hardened and clearly ready to challenge me at every step of this interrogation.

"So, I think-"

"Eat my pickled dick, you slippery asshole."

Okay, so right off the bat with this one… absolutely _fantastic._

"Wait… what's wrong with your wiener?"

His eyes widen for a second before he glances away and curses under his breath. Mr. D and Laila cover their mouths while they chuckle and Chiron and me just deadpan at the boy.

"Hold on… I'm taking that back. I'll just restart with a classic case of the Fuck You's. I'm not talking assholes, so just throw me in a cell or something. We're professionals, we'd never betray client security."

"Fair enough but let me ask you something else. Why even give a fuck? Your employer isn't going to bail you out, your little… group is going to kill you even if you escape. So just throw those fuckers under the bus, in the end they'll be doing the same thing. Logically it's your best move, fuck them before they fuck you."

He looks away face scrunched in confusion, "That… makes sense while also being the dumbest thing ever."

"Exactly, now tell me; does it really matter? Look at where you're at right now. Tied up in a basement being questioned like a respectful person, completely oblivious to the Lamia witch just waiting for the chance to shove a spiked rod into your pee-hole."

"She wants to do **what?!** "

He looks over at Laila who gives him a fang-mouthed smile while eerily waving her fingers at him. He gulps nervously and glances at me with an expression of pure desperation.

"Okay, yeah, fuck that. I'll gladly tell you everything, just keep _her_ away from me!"

Laila's smile drops and an aura of depression circles around her. Mr. D comforts her, himself too being depressed about the lack of fucked up torture going on. Gods, these two are actually idiots.

"Wonderful," I say, smiling at him, "Then tell me everything."

* * *

Well… that went pretty good actually. I was right when I guessed they were hired by Mori, but apparently they weren't the only things sent after me by Mori.

The Hermes boy told me that Ignis was a first attempt by Mori herself on my life. She sent him after me, and the boys were to watch to make sure I actually died. At some point after the fight, however, Mori changed her mind and wanted them to kidnap me and take me to her.

While they had great information for me, Mori never contacted them directly. She used telepathy of some kind to initiate orders, so the assassins have no clue at all where she's currently located.

But there was still some great knowledge they gave to me, however. Blake's intel about Mori having F.O.B's was correct, the Hermes kid told me that she has four bosses operating out of four bases located around the continental United States.

They don't know where all of them are, but they do know of one. The boss at that one has control of the Black Hand, using the assassins as enforcers as well as using his base to house the order.

It's clear that it's the first place I need to go to, and there I can accomplish many things in one fell swoop. One is to destroy the base out and weaken Mori's empire, another is figure out where I can find the other bases as well.

The last bonus from destroying the base is taking out the Black Hand as well. Without Mori's support, the order should faze out and hopefully get the assassins to leave me alone.

According to the boys, the base itself isn't that large. It's more of a supply outpost populated by a small contingent of monsters.

Still, danger there comes in the form that even a dozen demigods could lose against a small army that populates that base. If I'm going to be doing it solo, then I need to be highly prepared for a fight like this. Crowd control is going to be important here, so stocking up on explosives would be a smart choice.

"So, you've got a location. What now?"

I look over and see Mr. D leaning against a railing with his iconic can of coke in his hand. His majestic purple eyes stare at me with intensity, as if he's expecting something from me.

"Well, I guess it's the start of my next and hopefully last journey. I've got to pop the bases until they lead me to my wife, from there I guess… ask for a pardon from Zeus?"

He humph's indignantly and takes a sip from his drink, "Still haven't figured it out yet, have you? Whatever, you'll learn in time. You know, you remind me of myself back then actually."

I raise a curious eyebrow, "Really, how so?"

"I was a demigod before I became an Olympian. It wasn't easy getting godhood from my father, I too had to prove myself worthy of it. You're on the right path now, so try not to muck it up. I've already put a large sum of money against Hermes you'll make it through in the end, so do right by me and perhaps I'll throw my weight around to get you a pardon. Oh, would you look at that, something more important to do."

I look away as he flashes out Olympian style. That was… probably the most interesting conversation I've had with a god as of late. Does-does Dionysus actually _care_ about me succeeding? Or is he only interested because he has money on the line?

Most would think the last one, but I remember Dionysus before he was salty like he is now. When I was young, he was director for only a temporary amount of time. He was still kind of a dick back then, but the stories I hear from Campers here he's much worse now.

Are we… bonding over our kind of similar circumstances?

I don't know, but it's not something I should be bothered with right now. Still, what does he mean by 'still haven't figured it out'? I honestly have no clue what he's alluding to, so I guess I'll just have to see what happens in time.

With my pondering done for the moment, I head over to the Athena cabin to gather up some of the supplies we stash under the floorboards. Technically we're not supposed to, all requisitions are supposed to go through the Camp Store.

But Athena kids have a natural talent for stockpiling our own gear for quests like this. It's nice seeing Richard's legacy of illegal activities continue on with another generation.

The Cabin's bound to be empty, seeing as how Annabeth is currently with them and Bianca on a field trip to the Natural History museum for another the rest of the day. I approach the door to the cabin but pause when I hear the sound of what I guess to be large shears chopping something.

Goosebumps roll down my arms, a sense of anxiety triggering warning bells in my instincts. This… something's wrong here. But… I can't stop myself from opening the door, like some outside force is compelling me forth.

I open the cabin door, and come face to face with my destiny.

* * *

Three old ladies sit in authentic wicker chairs, one spinning a blue thread where another measures it, up until the final one cuts it with a large and bedazzled pair of yarn scissors. Fear crawls up my spine, being in the presence of supreme beings such as this makes me want to turn around and run until I no longer can.

The Fates, the daughters of Zeus and Themis, masters of destiny, or so they imply.

In perfect synchronization all three of them stop their work and look at me, hollow eyes and wrinkled faces at me smiling at me with a surreal and uneasiness to me.

When they finally speak, each one takes a turn to complete the previous one's sentence.

"Hello-"

"-child of Wisdom, ascended demigod-"

"-we have come now, the time for destiny is at hand."

"Samson, you know what must be done-"

"-yet still you deny it,-"

"-You run from us. From destiny."

"-There may only be one, yet there are three."

"We cannot have this."

"Luna must be banished,-"

"And so, you must as well."

"End this ceaseless machination, banish the Titan and raise another."

"For this is our decree,-"

"-Our will is absolute,-"

"Lest you find yourself challenging fate."

"Speak your peace so that we may leave, tell us now. Who are you to challenge fate?"

I can barely hold myself back from shaking vehemently, the hollow words of the Fates making my skin feel like it's crawling. But… I know there's more to the fates then what they show to others. Even if I have to defy them, I will do what I can for Mori.

Even… even if it means I have to die.

"I've-I've seen through the illusions of reality before, as per the power of Oculus. I caught a glimpse of what everything means and found fate to be far more fluid then even the gods think. Destiny may not be so absolute as we believe. This is what I believe, but I know what is coming for me. If it will ensure Mori's safety, then I will die."

The Fates give me a toothy smile, their hollow eyes twinkling with some kind of mirth, or even excitement behind them.

They have me cornered and I know it. I have to die as they planned long ago, and only then can Mori be safe. It's a crushing feeling accepting my destiny, knowing that soon I'll never be with her ever again. But for her sake, I'll do whatever it takes.

Slowly they fade away into nothingness, the last sound I hear from them is the horrible echo of their scissors cutting a yarn, likely my own.

I sit down on a nearby bunk and hold my hands to my chin. Sometime alone, I think I need that right now.

Nobody needs to see me crying.

I was almost done loading supplies into my Van when a familiar pair of voices calls out from behind me. I curse to myself while they wait for me. Dammit, they weren't supposed to get involved!

"And where do you think you're going, mister? Not bailing on us for a suicide mission, are you?"

"Y-yeah, that's kinda stupid. At least take us with you! No one should ever be alone!"

I turn around with a sigh, meeting the expectant gaze of Annabeth with Bianca doing her best to give me a stern glare by her side.

"Hey guys… how was the museum? I thought you were going to be gone all day."

"We were, but a cyclops came and wrecked the place. Listen, don't try and distract us by changing the conversation! We just got done talking with Chiron. Samson, don't be an idiot! I know how you feel about having companions on your quests, I've read your journal before. But that doesn't matter, you will die if you try and do this solo, you _need_ back up!"

Bianca steps forward, her dark eyes seemingly boring a hole into my souls, "I know you feel alone, like you don't belong… I know this because I feel the same way! But Sam, that's why you need to stay with those who understand you! Don't push yourself away from everyone. You told me a while ago you wanted to help others, so you should accept help when it comes to you!"

"Bianca… Annabeth… I appreciate it, I really do, but this could mean your deaths. I'm immortal, even if I… die, I can come back later. I have a second chance. When I go on quests, people around me die. Last one we got lucky Percy didn't die! He only survived because the Ocean let him, any other demigod would've died well before we got him a potion. It's safer for all if I go by myself, nothing will be lost if I do."

"That's not true," Bianca shouts at me, surprising Annabeth and myself with the sheer amount of emotion she put into her words.

"You matter Samson! You matter to so many people! Don't run away like I did, all you'll do is hurt those around you! Whether you like it or not we're coming with! So move over, I'm your co-pilot, just like you said! We're a team, a duo! That's how it's been, and that's how it'll always be!"

She huffs a few times before blinking and looking at us in shock. She blushes and pulls her little beret down as if she's trying to cover her face. Annabeth and I look at her in shock for a moment before Annabeth smiles and pats Bianca's head.

"Well said, Bianca, I'm proud of you," She looks at me with a hard glare, "You are too. _Right, brother?!"_

"O-of course I'm proud! Damn Bianca, you've really grown in the month I've been gone! Very well, you guys know what the plan is. We've got a monster base to destroy, so let's get to it. But please… be _careful!_ I want us _all_ to make it back home at the end of this with minimal injuries."

Bianca lifts her hat back up and gives me a small smile. Her eyes twinkle with joy, and I can't help but feel just a bit better. You know, I think they're right. I have a family here helping me out, I shouldn't alienate myself.

The Daughter of Hades beams me a proud smile and glances at me expectantly, "Soooo… can we go to McDonald's?"

Annabeth slaps her face and sighs dramatically. Her despondent demeanor soon turns to anger when I say we'll stop there for lunch.

Yeah, I like having a family. I think for once, I've made a good choice.

* * *

It's kind of nostalgic being back on another road trip with Bianca and Annabeth. It's pleasant, relaxing even. Bianca and Annabeth take turn hanging out with me while I drive my van back to the west coast. The Hermes boy I interrogated told me the base is in Washington. The state, not the capitol.

The base is deep in some backwoods area well away from any city. A completely private compound with its own security garrison.

Thankfully the whole place is only barely larger then the pharmacy headquarters we raided for stuff a month ago. The main headquarters of the compound is likely where we'll find the boss, so we'll take him out and burn the place down.

As violent as that sounds, our little child of death is very excited to go out and destroy things. According to Annabeth, she's been really craving violence since I left for the tournament.

It's demigod… puberty, I guess? Or she's actually a bloodthirsty psychopath deep down inside. Rumor has it demigod children of Hades are often crazy, and it seems Bianca might be heading down that path.

Ah man, that sounds like it might be a problem.

I was fairly disappointed when I found out neither Percy or Nico were available to help us out with this mission of ours.

Percy I can understand because his mother recently gaze birth to a new sister. Not a demigod mind you, little Estelle Jackson is a pureblooded mortal girl. Nico, however, is a different case. After he vanished in the junkyard in Arizona, there hasn't been a single iota of information about him since.

He's vanished completely from the face of the earth, much to Bianca's trepidation. She's been a nervous mess while I was gone, even IM's couldn't find the boy.

As cruel as it is to say, it's not something we can be concerned with for the time being. Our mission is something that's absolute. If Nico wants to come back to society, then we'll be ready as always. Until that point, we have our purpose.

Annabeth is up in the front seat with me currently. Bianca's inside 'learning' from Laila about… stuff. I have no clue what 'stuff' is, but I hope to all of the gods I can name she's not showing her that fucking torture kit she has.

"What can you tell me about this base? Did that Hermes boy have any statistics on monster population and loadout?"

"There was something I can infer, but he didn't really pay attention to stuff like that. Total garrison there is between one hundred and two hundred. The biggest threat is a small force of giants, likely gegeines. What I'm worried about is if they have modern weaponry. You said Mori's base when she brainwashed you had outdated, but actual mechanized weapons like tanks and artillery. You brought the whole place down, but there's a chance that wasn't the entire mechanized force. A good leader has resources scattered across many bases, and Mori is clever."

"Then we need to think of a good counter for heavy vehicles. Monsters are dangerous, but they aren't good with mortal weapons. If anything, then it's potential demigods with automatic weapons we need to be careful around. Honestly, some Greek fire grenades would be an excellent counter. It'll burn through light armor, and no demigod will stay around when an all-consuming fire is spreading. Though for our safety's sake, acquiring some bulletproof armor would be good. Juggernaut can block bullets, so all we need is two things for Bianca and myself."

"Hmm… I think I know where we can get some gear. Back during my second quest, Mori stole an armored van from the SWAT force Laila sent after us. We abandoned it in the woods outside of some small town in the Colorado mountains. We'll swing by there and get the gear we left behind. It's old, but it should hold out fine."

"Well, Colorado is along the way. Bulletproof vests could be what keeps us alive, so I suppose a small detour is fine."

* * *

The trip to the town out in Colorado took some time, but we arrived there in midday. The forest certainly has changed in the last forty years, but I recognized many of the same Nymph's from last time. Even that one that tried to get me to bang her niece. Anyways... they lead me to the van Mori abandoned here years ago, and thankfully the armored vehicle held up to the test of time.

The paint is all but gone, and much of the armor is rusty while vines and other plants wrap the vehicle up in a floral cocoon, but the cargo bay itself remained dry so the equipment inside was still fine.

Annabeth cracked open a metal safe and pulled out a couple of old bulletproof vests for herself and Bianca. Bianca's was pretty big on her, but she'll just have to make do. We were about to leave when Bianca points out another safe under the seats. Being the curious owls that we were, we busted those open to and revealed a box full of old assault rifles.

"Holy crap... think we can use these?"

"You know what? That's actually a really great idea!"

Bianca reaches into the box and pulls out what I guess to be a grenade launcher.

"Hey Samson... think we can scrap the van and make a tank?"

I give her a _very_ excited grin. Turning my van into a tank? Dude... **hell yes.**


	54. Chapter 54

**A/N: Super important note here, the narrative is going to be changing from here on out. I've felt that recently you guys haven't been fully understanding emotions and such from the characters, and that's really not an okay thing. Emotion is a very present and important part of this story, and if I'm failing to present that to you readers, then I'm failing as a writer.**

 **From here on out I'll be writing in the Third Person, that way I'll be able to properly showcase emotions from** _ **all**_ **characters in that certain spot of the story. Sorry for a change in narrative perspective, but once again I feel like it's the only way for all characters to get their fair due in the story.**

 **~Trax**

* * *

 _Spring 2011_

The base camp Mori's forces have been running out of was exactly as Annabeth had expected to be like. Small, compact, but holds many warehouse-sized buildings that likely contain the supplies for Mori's underground empire.

Annabeth is a clever girl, the years of war and battles have honed her mind into the most dangerous weapon she's capable of wielding; still, even with a mind as sharp as hers even she has doubts of a successful attack by three demigods against the garrison of the base.

Monsters of all kinds mull around, lounging and lazily patrolling about the grounds. The moon is high in the night, so none of the creatures spot Annabeth spying on them, but she's counted at the very least one-hundred monsters of various kinds right now; not counting the same amount likely resting inside of the plethora of buildings inside the compound.

The grass rustles next to Annabeth but she is unbothered, her brother Samson and young charge Bianca snake through the grass and lie next to her, waiting for her to report the current situation.

"How's recon going? We haven't found an easy way in from the other area."

Samson watches Annabeth as she sighs and rubs her temples. It's not a good sign if she ever sighs, and Samson knows this well.

"They've got the base protected from all sides, and even if we sneak in successfully there's no way we could take on the sheer number of monsters in there! We need backup, numbers on our side. Can we get the Hunters to help? Or even a Legion strike team?"

"No can do,-" Samson says, shaking his head, "Artemis can't help me anymore and Reyna's told me the Legion isn't ready to mobilize against an army for a while, they're still recovering from the war with Gaea. We could ask Chiron for help, but it would take weeks to gather a significant number of backup and transport them out here."

Annabeth nods her head and looks out back into the base, formulating a clever enough plan that three demigods could pull off.

"There's no heavy weaponry in the base, those assault rifles you recovered combined with the armor you attached to the van could really help us out, but again a successful attack needs more then three of us."

A thought rings in her head and she turns and looks at Bianca. The Daughter of Hades returning her look with a curious, yet nervous stare.

"Bianca, do you think you could summon some undead for us? We haven't started your training much yet, but your lineage makes you very powerful. If you could summon even a dozen or so soldiers we have a good chance to win!"

Bianca scratches her arm nervously and huffs, her heart pumps rapidly and she does her best to stay confident.

"I-I can try, but I've never done this before! I don't even know where to start…"

Samson pats her head and gives her a fond smile; the boy being lost in his memories of when Mori was first teaching him magic. The student then becomes the master now.

"I can teach you about that. Anything mystical is my area, I've had great teachers after all. Let's go back to the van and see what we can do."

Bianca nods solemnly, but her eyes are steeled with a slight courage. For all of her time as a demigod, Bianca has felt her most useful when she was a Hunter of Artemis; an affair that lasted barely a couple weeks and ended with her untimely and potentially even wasteful death.

Now is her chance to prove her worth! In her eyes, Samson and Annabeth are senior-most demigods of the highest caliber, truly hero's worth striving to be like. Bianca believes this in an opportunity to finally prove herself with powers entirely her own!

No cheating blessing from a goddess, no babysitting from worried friends; this is her spotlight time! Her glory!

* * *

A deep shadowy abyss forms in the dirt, screams and echoes of damnation straight from the Christian idea of Hell seep up from the darkness. Bianca focuses on the quick training Samson taught her, using the power of her own will to summon undead spirits to fight on her behalf.

An eerie and self-pleased smile forms on her face as nine blobs of the darkest black rise from the shadowy pit. The darkness peels back and flows into the abyss before it too vanishes, leaving nine military dressed men in heavy combat attire that's torn and ratty like classic zombies.

Most of their flesh is covered by clothing and gas masks over balaclava's. The infamous hammer and sickle path on their left biceps leave little doubt about the era these men were from upon their deaths.

Samson stills and his eyes narrow to slits as he recognizes the infamous men. He was never very interested in American politics when he was mortal, but every person born in his time, demigod or not, recognizes and fears the symbol of the Soviet Union.

Afterall, for Samson, the enemy of the West was still a nuclear threat for what felt like months ago for him.

"Bianca," Samson warns, "Are you sure you want to use these men? KGB squads are enemies of America, we could be betrayed by them."

Annabeth gives him a queer look before realizing Samson definitely fears anything Russian. She makes a mental note to go over the history of Russia after he died so she can assure him the world is a much better place since the last time he was around.

"Don't worry Sam! These men are completely loyal to me, I _am_ the Daughter of Hades after all! Besides, these guys look totally awesome, there's no way we'll lose with these guys under my command! Speaking of, do you nine understand why I have summoned you?"

The head officer steps forward, his movements professional as though he were speaking to the leader of Russian himself.

"Da. We understand completely Komandir. Enemy base must be destroyed, and we are explosives. At your word, we shall begin operations immediately!"

"Wonderful! You may begin, though you guys should talk with my friends here. They've already begun scouting out the base, together I'm sure you'll find out the perfect way to bring the base down!"

The officer nods and turns to Annabeth and Samson, the Son of Athena looking very displeased about working with the Soviet soldier.

"Greetings, I am Ivan. This here is my company, Ivanoff, Ivanon, Ivangone, Ivanhere, Ivanqueer, Ivanot, Ivanan and Ivan."

Annabeth and Samson blink a few times, both tilting their heads to the side and giving the stoic soldier awkward looks.

Ivan, the commander, chuckles deeply at the confused demigods, "Is joke, no worries! Don't worry about names, no need to memorize them. Come, we must scout base once again."

He spins around and marches with his squad towards the base; the Children of Athena glance at one another for a second before shrugging and following suit with Bianca in tow.

* * *

Ivan scans across the base, taking count of the troops and equipment left to guard the compound. His many years of espionage and fighting in Afghanistan in the eighties has left his mind with a razors edge. A small squad with a big impact is his specialty, especially against large groups of disorganized and under-armed militia.

These 'monsters' may be fearsome, but so is lead from his gun. The assault rifles the Japanese boy supplied his squad with will be more then enough to handle a herd of dull creatures such as these.

Ivan will never tell anyone, but he prefers the weapons the Americans supplied their troops with over the weapons his comrades used in the motherland.

It's accurate and packs a punch, a worthy weapon. Truly a worthy weapon even if it is American. His eyes scan across the base and his gaze stops when he spots a familiar attack-helicopter developed in his homeland.

"There, in the open field. Mil MI-24, helicopter made by Russia. We sneak in and commandeer it and we will destroy the base from the air with more troops attacking on foot. Komandir, I will take three men and steal the war-beast, the rest of my men shall attack on foot with the armored van. Use the car as cover while we strike from the air, explosives will distract and scatter the enemies and our bullets shall end them. Give the command and we will begin."

The three demigods give Ivan impressed looks, even Samson does too. Ivan has clearly proven his ability within only a few seconds, all of them are very relieved he fights on their side! Bianca nods at Ivan and he leaves with two other troopers, sliding through the shadows and brush towards the base with scary efficiency.

Everyone else immediately heads back towards Samson's modified van, loading up into it and driving it back towards the road leading up to the compound. Thankfully it's easy enough to hide the vehicle just down the road, none of the monsters even bothered to send patrols down the road.

The ground group waits in the shadows, their nerves razzed as they wait for the sounds of alarms and a helicopter.

With good efficiency, Ivan begins his attack! Samson and Annabeth hear a large explosion and see the light of fire shining through the trees. It has begun.

Samson puts the van in gear and it slowly lumbers towards the gate. The heavy armor weighs the vehicle down, but he sees it as a reasonable tradeoff for survivability. The van approaches the gate and immediately it's seeable the base is in turmoil.

Fire and smaller explosions rock the base, monsters of all kinds run around as an old armed helicopter unleashes machine gun bullets and rockets onto the fleeing creatures. Ivan is forced to dodge as cyclops's and other giants start launching rubble at the aircraft.

"Everyone, out-NOW! We need to cover for Ivan! One of you guys drive the van, the rest of us will follow engage on foot!"

The occupants save one undead Russian exit the van and begin engaging stray monsters, creating a purposeful ruckus to draw attention away from the aircraft. Samson launches himself at a cyclops with his new spear, driving the electric tip into the large eye and killing the beast quickly.

Annabeth throws a new knife she bought at camp and lodges it into the neck of a dracanae trying to bite Samson's neck from behind. He sees the beast fading into dust and gives her a grateful smile. He tosses the knife back and she catches it midair and spins around and stabs a Kobalos in the head, ending its miserable life.

Bianca stands behind the van and uses her new favorite weapon, the Python Samson gave her, and blasts a variety of monsters straight in the head with scary accuracy. She's thankful that the Hunters still taught her to aim instead of relying on their blessings, but she's even more grateful that her death has led her to this moment.

Hunters are dull people and traveling with Samson has been the most exhilarating journey she's ever undertaken. If she was given the choice, then staying as Samson's apprentice is far more enjoyable and rewarding.

A soldier pulls her to the ground with her yelping as a series of loud and fierce bullets slam into the side of the van she was hiding under. The whooshing of a helicopter sounds overhead and she spots a different type of aircraft circling overhead to prepare for another attack run.

She looks at the armor and sees that the bullets traveled all the way through the vehicle and destroyed almost half of the undead she summoned while also ripping up huge chunks of Samson's van.

Anger seeps into her veins and she pushes the (re)dead soldier's corpse off herself and readies her trusty revolver. She takes a few steps an raises her gun. These douchebags dared to hurt her summons and damage Samson's prized vehicle, they will pay with their lives!

The nose of the enemy chopper turns and faces Bianca, she fires a bullet off and it bounces off the side of the armor near the air intake.

"C'mon," She screams with rage, firing yet missing again, "Shoot me! C'mon, SHOOT ME!"

As if responding to her command the heavy guns on the side fire a stream of hot lead. Because she's perfectly in line with the cockpit, the rounds miss her entirely. A few more slam into the van again, ripping holes into the armor.

She grows fiercely and aims with the gun again. The sights line up and she inhales deeply, the intake seemingly zooms into focus on her vision. The sounds of the world seemingly muffle, and she exhales. The boom of the revolver unleashes a fierce bullet that travels the distance to the helicopter in only a fraction of a second.

The upper engine ruptures in plume of smoke, Bianca's bullet struck true into the air intake! The propeller up top loses its speed causing the helicopter to spin uncontrollably and crash into a large warehouse.

Bianca waits a few seconds and the whole building explodes in a huge fireball, debris goes flying into the air where it comes down and squashes dozens of monsters or lights them on fire. Burning monsters and debris soon spread more fire, giving the base the impression of it being like the infamous Fields of Punishment.

The Daughter of Hades grunts a few times and turns around and starts firing at a group of Gegeines trying to get the drop on her. Samson and Annabeth stare at her dumbly as she laughs maniacally like a psychopath.

"Hey, Samson?"

"Yes, Annabeth?"

"I think we should like… confiscate that gun from her or something?"

They watch her blast the knee of a cyclops, the powerful gun blasting the leg in twine where she then places another bullet straight into the eye of the beast.

"Yeah… do _**you**_ want to even try?"

"…Fair point. Oh gods, she's becoming another Sam!"

"Sam? Who's that?"

A cold shiver runs down Annabeth's spine and she immediately knows that Eris is warning her not to tell Samson. When last they spoke, the Goddess of Discord made it very clear she wants Samson to be completely ignorant about Sam's existence.

If she remembers correctly, the Goddess wants it to be that way for 'comedic affect".

"He's just somebody I know," She states neutrally, parrying a sword from a Kobalos and severing the goblin's head, "Think nothing of it."

"Fair enough. The main building is up ahead, that's where we should find the boss and his files. Let's go before they call in reinforcements!"

Annabeth nods and races towards the building, cutting down a random monster and engaging two dracanae in a fierce duel. Samson takes his axe and chucks the weapon at one of the monsters, hitting the foul creature directly in the head and almost splitting it right open.

He holds his hand out and the axe is ripped free with a sick squelch where it flies back into his hand. He twists the handle of his spear and the long shaft shrinks and condenses into a hand-sized handle. His twirls the sword form around and quickly swipes up, cutting a small hellhound's mouth in half.

Bianca commands the surviving three soldiers and engages the remaining monsters left in the compound, calling out to Samson and Annabeth and telling them she can handle things outside.

The two siblings run into the building, if though reluctant, and kick the hard doors open. The headquarters is a three-story building, and if tradition is right then the boss is sure to be on the top floor.

The doors crash open and the heroes come face to face with over a dozen monsters of varying types. Empousa, Dracanae, and Harpies of many colors spin around and glare at the duo. Sharp teeth and claws clack furiously, and the herd of monsters charge the siblings of Wisdom.

Annabeth immediately severs the head of an Empousa and twirls around a swipe from a harpy and counters the beast by stabbing it in the head. Samson slaps an Empousa's sword out of her hand and bisects the beast by her waist, he kicks a Dracanae in the gut and parries another strike from a different monster with his axe.

Annabeth stabs an Empousa sneaking up on Samson's blindside and ducks from a harpies' swipe. She takes her knife and swings up as she rises, making a long cut up the bird-woman's entire body.

She ends the beasts screaming with a quick stab to the heart and goes back to cutting down weak monsters with her brother at her back. The two make quick and efficient work of the remaining monsters, expertly showing off their ability to fight in sync.

With the last monster turning into dust, the two race up the stairs and head towards the second level. They find a few stray monsters, but nothing worth remembering as the continue to the last floor. Besides sheer numbers, there are no strong creatures populating the base. Whomever the leader of the base is, however, is a different story entirely.

Whomever Mori's entrusted to be her Lieutenant of the base is sure to be strong enough to hold the position. Samson and Annabeth are on their guard for whomever they may be!

The hallway on the last floor leads to an immaculate double doorway. The siblings stop before it and meet one another's gaze. They nod and turn to the doors, kicking them both open simultaneously.

They strut assuredly into the large room that is likely the Lieutenants office. At the far end of the room is a large desk with a large chair facing away from them. Besides the two demigods, the place seems abandoned.

But Annabeth and Samson are smart individuals, and both are more then aware of the person hiding behind the throne-like chair.

Explosions, gunfire and regular fire light up in the reflections of the glass room, the carnage casting eerie shadows and orange light in the dark room. Samson glances up at the flickering lights up ahead and guesses that the power of the building has been destroyed, likely from Ivan's commandeered helicopter.

"Spin around," Annabeth commands from their side of the room, "You're surrounded, and your base is destroyed. Answer our questions and we'll show mercy."

The being in the chair slowly swivels around, the shadowy figure chuckling as they idly play with the sword in their hands.

"Well, never thought you'd have the guts to come after us like this. I've got to say, bravo! You truly live up to your legend, Annabeth; even you, mister _imposter!"_

Samson rolls his eyes in annoyance and steps forward, pointing his sword at the shadowy figure in a threatening manner.

"Yeah-yeah, you're just a broken record at this point! Listen to the lady and drop the sword, it's the easy way and the only one that lets you stay alive. So put your hands in the air!"

The figure in the shadows rises from their chair and walks around the side of their desk, sword held firmly in their hands as they face down the two intruders. Samson and Annabeth ready their weapons and prepare for a fight.

"Truly, you're a wonderful recreation, it almost feels like I'm looking at my _real_ brother!"

Samson's nerves start firing as he listens to the stranger's voice, an uncanny feeling threatening to swallow him whole. That voice… it can't be!

The figure walks into a stream of light that illuminates their face. Samson's breath hitches as he gazes over the achingly familiar boy; their face is soft and round, tiny freckles cover the bridge of their nose and speckle across to their cheeks, their hair is short and messy with a soft sandy brown color to it.

And lastly are their eyes, a stormy grey with just a hint of madness behind them. The eyes of a Child of Athena left too long inside his mother's mind. The eyes of a brother long since dead…

"W-william?... Is it… is it really?...No… she _couldn't_ have!"

Samson feels his heart shatter into millions of pieces as his (supposedly) deceased brother laughs at the sorry state of him. Annabeth's mind races as the name 'William' rings in her think pan. William… is it _really_ the same one from Samson's time?

Based on her brother's reaction, this is assuredly the same one! The big question to her, is straight up HOW?!

Could William have returned when the Doors of Death were opened? It's the only way that makes sense to her, that's the only way a spirit could be bound to the world after death.

Samson begins shaking and Annabeth puts a hand on his shoulder, snapping him from his shock and telling him she'll handle this from here.

She takes a powerful step forward and glares at the cackling form of her _other_ super old brother.

"If you're _really_ William, then how can you be here and why? The real William would never align with an evil person like Mori and treat his brother like this! Who are you really?!"

William stops cackling and rests his sword on his shoulder, giving Annabeth a smug grin. Samson shivers as he watches the boy. William was always a nice boy, he would never have an expression like this!

"It was back during that war against Gaea, Mori used her powers to summon me and everyone else from Elysium and bound us to her will! She empowers us, controls us, shows us the truth of this faker. I've seen the truth, and I know that mother and the rest of Olympus _needs_ to be destroyed! To truly avenge my brother, they all must die!"

"Then you truly aren't William. Any true Child of Athena would know the gods are better then anything else. I'm sorry it's come to this, but _you_ are the faker! Samson, if you can't take this I'll handle it…"

Samson shakes his head and readies his sword, steeling his courage and ignoring the bile rising up in his throat.

"No, we'll do it together. This guy claims he's my brother, but there's no way. We'll kill him and get the intel. Simple as that." Samson gains a distant look to his eye, "…Simple as that…"

The William imposter readies his sword and Annabeth and Samson prepare to counter. In the blink of an eye, Annabeth brings her sword up to block and is blasted far away by William. Samson's instincts flare up, warning him of danger.

That imposter, he moved so quick Annabeth barely blocked his strike! Even then, the supposedly resurrected boy hit her so hard she was thrown away.

Samson lashes out with a flurry of fast and precise strikes, pushing William on the defensive, or so he thinks. William suddenly parries Samson's sword and punches him in the sternum. Samson coughs out golden blood from the surprisingly strong strike and flies back into the wall.

He slides down and coughs out more blood, gagging as he coughs while also trying to inhale simultaneously.

"So this is the _big bad Samson?_ " William mocks, holding his arms out as though he's inviting Samson to try and fight him again, "Is this really the best you can do? Are you such a poor copy you can't even recognize his own techniques?! The _real_ Samson taught me that!"

Said Samson's eyes widen, a dark pit forming in his stomach. This can't really be… no, William is long since dead and in Elysium. This is a doppelgänger, there's no way he isn't!

William looks left and is blindsided from a nasty haymaker from Annabeth, she hits him so hard he's thrown to the floor and slides several feet farther.

Samson coughs one last time and rises back to his feet. He stands by Annabeth's side and she roughly slaps him on the back. He rolls his eyes with a smile and the two ready for a fight, this time prepared for their enemy.

William kicks himself back to his feet and growls, the false demigod very angry with himself for allowing himself to be caught unawares.

"Luck shot, won't be happening again!"

"Doesn't matter. We've tested the waters, now we know what to do. Should've taken us out when you had the chance, only a fool lets something like that go to waste!"

William's temper snaps and he lunges at the two with a furious cry. They dodge to his either side, Samson parries with his axe as William decides to focus on him. Annabeth seizes the opportunity and slashes at his unguarded back.

He spins around as fast as lightning and blocks but cries as Samson makes a long gash across his back with his sword. William jerkily turns and slams his sword hard at Samson who catches it in the cross guard and kicks him away.

Annabeth slashes along his waist as he goes past her, William groans in pain and jumps impossibly far away from them. The duo glance at one another in worry, both of them nervous about the potential power William might have.

Whatever is letting him jump like that is not a natural power.

He clutches his bleeding side, mad eyes glaring at his half-siblings as a slight red haze fills inside his eyes. His red blood seems to glow lightly, as if he has a light inside of his own body.

William roars with a ferocity and lunges at Annabeth and Samson, saliva drips from his mouth as he seemingly goes completely feral.

Samson cries out as William collides with his chest, the weight throwing him to the floor where the feral boy straddles his chest and lays a vicious series of heavy blows to his face. Annabeth lunges at William and stabs her knife into his back. He cries out and swings his arm back, pushing Annabeth away in an arc.

She collides with the window, cracking it but not fully breaking it. A plan forms in her mind and she gets back to her feet with a groan.

Samson is still getting his face mashed by the crazy lunatic, so she quickly tosses her sword at him. He cries out in pain as the sword slashes across his back, leaking out more glowing blood.

He turns to Annabeth with an animalistic fury. She gives him the middle finger Magnus style and William lunges at her like a fox on a rabbit. At the very last moment she drops down to the floor, the feral William goes flying over her head and crashes straight through the window.

She listens carefully for a few seconds until she winces at the unmistakable thud of a body hitting hard dirt.

Annabeth collapses to the ground right quick, breathing in relief that the fight was over quickly and without too much difficulty. Suddenly she realizes that her brother was getting throttled only a few seconds ago.

She's on her feet in an instant and is by his side, making sure he isn't too damaged. For once, she's thankful he's immortal. Ichor in his veins makes him much sturdier then a regular demigod, so at most he has a bloody lip and cracked glasses.

"Holy shit," Samson gasps, taking his broken glasses off and scoffing at the damage, "What even happened?!"

Annabeth takes his hand and brings him to his feet, patting his back and laughing at the scene.

"You got your ass kicked is what happened. C'mon, he fell out the window. Let's make sure he's actually dead."

* * *

It was a pitiful sight when Annabeth and Samson found William outside. The fighting has long since subsided, the garrison either being killed or running away from the ferocity of Bianca and her summons.

William didn't actually die from the fall, but his body is still broken and torn. His limbs are cracked in disturbing ways, blood spills from the wounds created by the bones that pierce his skin. Tears spill from Samson's eyes, but he fails to understand why.

This is just an imposter, so why does he feel so destroyed?

Samson keels by William's side and listens as the dying boy tells his final piece. The red haze to his eyes has left, only sparkling tears and pure innocence shines from his grey eyes.

The pit in Samson's stomach soon becomes a gaping chasm. Those eyes! He knows those eyes! He would never forget them! The harshest reality crashes down on his shoulders and a feeling of gaping numbness clouds his mind.

He cups William's face and tenderly rubs his cheek. Samson tries to speak but no words come from his mouth. What can he say? Sorry I've killed you again?!

William speaks for Samson, love and compassion almost radiating from his eyes alone.

"I-It's okay, Samson… This needed to happen…Mori…she brought us back, all of us… We're slaves to her will… not really us. Samson… you have to kill us… it-it's the only way to free us… We're in so much pain… torture… Send us back-back to Elysium. We…forgive you… we never blamed you… and neither should you… Samson… I…love…you…"

Hot tears spill down Samson's cheek as William coughs gross amounts of blood, the true brother of Samson suffering as he waits for his brother to send him back to paradise.

Samson grips his silver knife tightly and brings it above his brother's heart. His hand shakes as he holds the weapon ready, the crushing weight of mercy killing his own brother paralyzing him in fear.

William looks at his older brother one last time and closes his eye, showing his brother it's okay. Samson closes his eyes and brings the blade down. William doesn't even flinch.

And so, the deed is done. Samson removes the blade and drops it unceremoniously to the dirt. Annabeth comes to his side and puts a gentle hand on his shoulder.

He's quiet for a minute, unresponsive even. What is he supposed to be feeling right now? Happy to see his brother? Horribly crushed to realize he has to kill his brother to save him?

It takes a minute, but the ugly sobs of despair is all he can do in this situation. Annabeth is quiet as her brother cries his heart out. She's been at the sides of nearly a dozen demigods as they weep over the fallen, and for her brother she always will.

Through the despair and devastation Samson still remembers his brothers words. The rest of his family; Steven, Richard…Thomas, they live again, thralls enslaved to Mori's will. Death is the only way to save them, and by the Gods Samson will suffer every torture if it means his brothers will be left in peace.

Once he believed he caused the death of his brothers, and now he most assuredly will become the cause.

For the sake of his family, Samson will become the ultimate sinner. After all, the Fates directly told him he must die at the end of all of this. For the life of his Wife and everything he cares about, Samson Akira will die.


	55. Chapter 55

**A/N: Hope everyone who celebrates it has had a happy Easter. I'm back with another chapter here, hope that everyone enjoyed the new narration last chapter. I'm feeling much more comfortable with the style now, so most definitely I will be keeping up with the Third Person View. Anyways last chapter we've found out Mori has resurrected Samson's brothers, and it ended with him mercy killing William. As far as enemies go, he was certainly weak. However… we did see he got upgraded somehow. If the weakest of Samson's brothers could throw him and Annabeth around… then the stronger one's are certainly much more frightening.**

 **Hope you guys enjoy this next chapter;**

 **~Trax**

* * *

 _Spring 2011_

Following the…tragedy of the assault on the base, Samson, Annabeth and Bianca gather whatever important things that they can before potential reinforcements from some other bases can counter attack.

The armor on the van mostly fell off from the attack the helicopter dealt, much to Samson's chagrin. It's not enough his most beloved sibling had to be killed, now one of the last good memories from his wife Mori has been horribly damaged.

William's body was taken during the evacuation, Samson wishes to burn the body with full honors once they return to camp. A hard drive full of intel was recovered from the headquarters and the helicopter Ivan stole also followed the escape van as it travels back to New York.

Annabeth took helm in the driver's seat for Samson along the few days travel on the highways. She was more then grateful they were never ambushed by any monsters or assassins hired by Mori, but the uneasiness in her stomach never left her the entire time.

Bianca has been the one comforting Samson the most while Annabeth was busy driving, and while she's grateful for the younger girl's support, she would much prefer it was her handling Samson right now.

It's very tiring for the Daughter of Athena to handle mourning individuals as much as she has, but for _any_ member of her family she will struggle through it.

In the passing moments when Annabeth could spend time seeing how her brother was doing, her fears were proven true. His once shining silvery eyes have become dull, his happiness and mirth has been all but crushed by the horror of slaying his own kin.

It took a few days, but the little mismatched caravan finally arrived back at Camp Half Blood. It was a fairly big uproar when Ivan landed a military helicopter in camp, but Annabeth managed to calm Chiron down when she said they'll keep it stored at Samson's house eventually.

Of course, she never told her old mentor she has no idea _how_ since the portal to Samson's home is through a drape curtain in the back of his van.

Following the return to camp, Samson has taken to holding himself up in the study of the Athena cabin, only coming out every so often to work on his van or the helicopter which thankfully both of which can still function fine with only some minor repairs. Well, for the helicopter maybe, the van needs a new body.

For several days, Samson's mood never seemed to improve. However, a meeting with a certain like-minded Child of Hephaestus helped spur him down the right path. Unlikely friends they'll become, but like minded individuals have always seemed drawn to one another. Family will always be the most unlikely ones, this is a lesson Samson has learned even if he's unaware of it.

* * *

Leo Valdez is an excitable child, he tells this to everyone who meets him. When he heard that a famous demigod renowned for making awesome magical gadgets was back in camp he was ecstatic.

This is his chance to meet the legend and maybe even learn some things!

Though he had the chance to much earlier, he was a little embarrassed actually. Leo accidentally cursed his entire cabin, and no it wasn't his fault!- with insanity when he messed around with The Mystic's awesome sunglasses. He's really not sure if they would be mad at him or not, so he hung back while he was here before he sent off to the arena.

But thanks to some loving scolding from Nyssa, Leo has found himself with the courage to talk to the immortal demigod.

Leo has seen Samson only a little bit over the past few days, but he found his chance to speak with him while the man was doing some work on the sweet helicopter he brought to camp.

There was no one around besides the two of them, and Leo was thankful for the incidental privacy. He's just a _tiny_ nervous, but he'd never tell anyone that!

"Yo! What's uh-up?!" Leo snaps and does finger guns at Samson with a unsure chuckle, famous Leo grin forefront as he does his best to seem cool.

Samson stops messing with some damaged wires and slowly turns his head to glance at the boy. His eyebrows furrow as his bloodshot eyes quint at, and recognize the camper who fucked around with Oculus.

He may be a little salty with the boy, but he doesn't really care too much. After all, he wouldn't have found his stuff if Leo been the catalyst for it all.

"Hey… Leo, right? Counselor of Cabin nine?"

"Yup! Right on the money there! Look I just want to… apologize for dicking around with your stuff. No hard feelings, right?"

Samson keeps his gaze on Leo for a moment. The smith fidgets under his gaze, having minor flashbacks to Annabeth giving him the same stare.

"Yeah…yeah, we're cool."

Samson goes back to his business rewiring, he's exhausted at this point and he'd like to get his things fixed before trying to open up the hard drive Annabeth got from the base and going after Mori again.

Leo's smile falters, his feelings just a tiny bit hurt. If he's honest, he's a little disappointed right now. Here is a legendary magician and smith looking all forlorn and ignoring everyone around him.

But even more then that, Leo feels disappointed with himself. He talked with Annabeth when she came back with him… with the body of a demigod. She told him the story about how his brainwashed wife resurrected his siblings from his time and turned them against him, and how Samson has to kill them to free them from some freaky spell.

The funeral for the body was sad, though the one who did most of the crying was Samson, with Chiron looking close to maybe shedding a tear himself. Afterwards The Mystic withdrew to his cabin, only coming out for a few things or project. It's a sorry state to see someone in, but Leo knows when one needs help the most.

Leo, surprisingly, thinks he can relate to the magician. He too has lost all of his family; his mother to Gaea, his entire lineage to his witch of an aunt. So he gets it, he really does. Leo has had time to accept his family has left him behind, Samson's only had a few days.

He comes around the side of the helicopter and starts helping Samson with the wiring. Samson glances at Leo before mumbling a thanks and working alongside him.

Both are silent for a while as they work on the vehicle, but slowly over the course of the day they begin opening up some more. Hard work is said to bring people together, and fellow craftsman are well known for becoming compatriots.

"Yup, the Argo II is the best thing I've ever worked on! Two hundred feet long, repeating crossbows and of course... a bronze dragon head at the front! You should have seen it, it was beautiful. Too bad thunder beard-" Cue angry thunder rumbling overhead, "-launched it across the world and destroyed the whole thing!"

"Damn dude, that sucks! Have you thought about making another one? Firepower like that would be pretty handy for camp, would never have to worry about an attack again."

"Eh, maybe? It took me forever to build it the first time, and back then I happened to have the resources available. Getting all of the stuff again would take forever, and that's even if the gods let me. I doubt they'd be happy to hear about demigods producing weapons like that."

"Whelp, I suppose you have a point. Still, you've done great work. Funny enough, I have a boat too. Mine couldn't fly, it was just a modified corvette from world war two."

"Oh yeah, that metal war-beast! It's still hanging out by the beach I think. The girls there charge for tours and weapon testing. They're making bank last I checked."

Samson snorts indignantly, "Not surprised. Ornea's bad with money so she'll do just about anything to make profit. I'm surprised she didn't try this scheme earlier."

Leo motions to the seats inside of the fixed up helicopter and the both of them sit down and relax. Leo opens his tool belt and pulls out two bottles of beer. Samson raises an eyebrow but takes the drink and takes a few sips, surprised by the chill of it.

"It's… cold?"

"Yeah I don't know either, they just kind of come out that way. Don't tell Chiron! I don't want him to take my belt away!"

"You're fine dude. I sell weed so why would I rat you out?"

Leo snickers and leans back, taking a sip of his own drink. The two demigods relax for a while, idly chatting about smithing and enchanting as well as comparing the difference between them. After an amount of time passes Leo goes quiet.

He still remembers that Samson is mourning, and like any good bro he wants to do his best to help out.

"Hey… Samson?"

"…"

Leo sighs, "Look, I just want to say my peace. I've lost family before too. Heck, I lost them all. When I was little Gaea killed my mother, and my aunt blamed me and turned my whole family against me. They disowned me and sent me straight to adoption… I haven't heard a single thing from them for probably ten years now."

"…"

"…It's hard, trust me, I know. Just… you have other people to live for, you know? You have Annabeth, your cabin, and if what I've heard is true then you have your wife too. You can't give up man, you have to keep fighting for all the people counting on you. I know it'll take time, but I just want you to know there's still things here for you. Camp is one great big family, even the Ares shitheads! There's a lot of people out there you have to prove wrong, and the first thing to do is not giving up!"

Samson sighs and takes a sip of his beer. He understands what Leo is saying, he really does. This isn't Samson's first round of losing his family, technically this will be the second. Still… it hurts, it really hurts. Samson knows he has a duty, and he'll see it through no matter what.

Though he really does appreciate Leo's words. Even if they're needless- (Samson would never give up!)- it's the thought that counts.

"Thank you, Leo. I really do appreciate it, but don't worry so much. I'm not giving up or anything, just… resting, I guess. I've still got some things to do, but I've got to bide my time before that happens. Anyways, it was good hanging out with you, we should do it again some time."

"Sure thing man, glad to help!"

Samson waves Leo goodbye and heads to the Big House. Now that the helicopter is fixed up it's about time he starts looking into the hard drive!

* * *

Annabeth was inside of the Big House when Samson arrived. She was quite surprised to see him in better spirits again. He tells her about the time he spent with Leo and how it helped him out quite a bit, and how he finished fixing up the helicopter, so they can use it for traveling around.

Annabeth makes a mental note to thank Leo later, and takes Samson over to the war room where she has her laptop and the hard drive waiting.

"Find anything on the hard drive yet?"

"I have, and there's some pretty important things I've found. For the most part it's a log of finances and stocks, but just an hour ago I found an accounting of locations. There's three other large locations mentioned in notes with your brothers being listed as lieutenants running them; one is a large location way up in the Alaska wilderness, another is surprisingly an aircraft carrier sailing around Hawaiian Islands, and last is-wait for this… Area… Fifty one!"

"Wait… Area fucking fifty one?! How the hell is that possible?! That's like… owned by the government!"

"I thought the same thing but looking over the notes I found out that until recently it was actually a Gargarean base, but Mori had a coup détat leader take control. From what the notes imply, there's essentially a resistance group left over from the surviving Gargarean's trying to retake the base. From what I understand this is a separate affiliate tribe to the Gargarean King, like an associate or something and Amos, the King, can't commit troops without declaring war essentially. And since we just got out of an enormous war with Gaea…"

"…The King won't just declare war since everyone is still recovering from the last one. Dammit, Mori's expanding while we're all still weak!"

Samson sighs and runs his hand through his hair, the stress of what's truly laid out ahead of him is taking its tole on his mental strength.

"What's the first course of action then? We have three targets, but I can almost guarantee that the base in Alaska is where Mori is. That means taking out her support structure should come first. If we rush after her right now she'll have two other places to go to and regroup. To topple the empire, we need to take out the legs."

Annabeth hums and looks away. Thoughts and plans race through her mind as she considers all possible courses of action. Should they try and take on an aircraft carrier? Samson has a war boat, but it's much too small to fight something so big.

What about Area fifty one? They could ally themselves with the rebels and help them retake the base and… kill whichever brother is sure to be running that place.

Out of the two reasonable choices open to them right now, Annabeth figures assisting the Gargareans to be the most doable. Plus, she does know Amos at least just a little bit. If they're going to successfully sink an aircraft carrier, then getting the support of a Gargarean assault force will almost assuredly be required.

"I think the first thing to do should be helping the rebels take the base. I know Amos, and if we do him a favor by taking the base then he'd almost for certain help out for when we go after the aircraft carrier! After that we march up to Alaska for hopefully a final assault on Mori's last base. If we're going to the base, then we need to get in contact with Amos. Time is of the essence here, so sorry to push you around but we need to get moving as soon as possible!"

"The helicopter is good to go. Get in contact with Amos and we can leave as soon as we have to go ahead."

* * *

Amos has only been king for a handful of months, and the entire time he's been busy trying his best to stop a full on civil war within Gargarean society from forming.

His 'Generals', men that run their own tribes essentially like vassals, form the bulk of Gargarean society and forces. If they decide to rebel, then it would be a war that would last for many years, and Amos is not so certain he would emerge as the victor.

It's not enough he's fending off a budding civil war, now only recently he got informed of a coup within the bases of one of his vassals.

General Mills, the leader of Area Fifty One, was overthrown by a member of his inner circle. He's rumored to have been slain and succeeded by a mystery figure that has yet to reveal themselves to Amos.

Despite the violent overthrow, they have pledged themselves in fealty to Amos, but the new king does not look at the situation as being convenient by any means.

Amos is currently cornered; if he attacks the base to place a person in power he knows he can trust, then most assuredly the other Generals will declare war immediately. If he leaves the mystery person up to their own devices, then they'll be operating out of a place of power without any kind of real control by Amos.

What he needs is an agent, some kind of trump card that can help the surviving members of the opposite faction regain power without it being traced back to Amos. He could ask Samuel for help, but that might not work since Amos was a well known supporter of Sam during his brief power on the throne.

If not Sam, then who else?

Thankfully for the young king, his answer came in the form of an IM from Annabeth Chase, one of the most well known demigods of the age. It's basically been accepted that the Prophecy of Seven would have failed if she wasn't the one planning everything out.

Just don't say that to Jason. It's rumored he's kind of a dick and gets angry since most of the prophecy was successful because of Greeks.

Anyways, his thoughts are getting distracted. Annabeth popped in view in a grainy IM (seriously, what's with the feed?!) and scared the bejebuz out of Amos. She gives him a curt apology and begins describing her proposition to him.

"Sorry to pop in like this, but we need an exchange of sorts! For about a month now we've been fighting The Witch in the North, and recently we've come across some disturbing intel about one of your vassals. Whomever is running Area Fifty One is not your ally, they're a equivocator, a false leader put in place by the witch! The person running the base needs to be taken down, and we'd like your support to do so."

Amos blanches at the sudden waterfall of information Annabeth is basically throwing at him. How could he be so blind?! How could he have forgotten about the Witch in the North?! Even though it's very… uncouth to just believe the words of an acquaintance, any knowledge coming from one such as Annabeth should be taken heed.

"This is very… disturbing news. I can't say I believe you fully seeing as how I don't have the full story, but this is an opportune moment for me. I won't give you my support, but I'd be very _grateful_ if you can restore the rebels to power. I know for certain they support me, so do this and I can help you with a favor at some other point."

Annabeth smiles slightly, clearly happy that she's gotten everything she needs from the king. Amos frowns, he's not overly happy about being played like this, but an opportunity to regain control of a crucial base without it being his responsibility is not something you should throw away.

"Wonderful. If you can send a message to the rebels I'd appreciate it. Give me their coordinates and tell them to watch out for an old Russian Hind within a day."

The feed cuts out and Amos is left slightly confused but more then happy. All of his problems are slowly beginning to fade, and he didn't have to do a thing!

Well, Amos has his own problems right now. Sure he may own a favor to her now, but what could she really want? It's not like she's going to attack _another_ heavily armed and fortified base, right?

Amos stills and swears loudly to himself. Dammit, that's exactly what's going to happen!

* * *

Annabeth sits back in her chair, happy with herself and her work.

"Well… that went well, didn't it?"

"I've got to say, you do good work. Manipulating a king into giving you service? Calm down there Morgana, I doubt the king can keep up!"

Annabeth and Samson lean back and laugh, both Children of Athena finding humor in the situation as a whole.

"Okay, we've got our setup ready, so shall we be on our way?"

"I say it's about time. Is there anyone willing to come with us?"

"Honestly… not really. Almost everyone in the camp has been through at least one war, they're not to keen to go forth into another one. Bianca is coming with since she can summon undead, that power would come in handy if we're helping an under armed rebellion assault a military base."

"Good idea, but keep her away from the heavy fighting! She's still young and inexperienced, if we got a Daughter of Hades killed the God would either curse us or kill us."

Annabeth shudders at the potential idea of getting cursed or tortured and killed by Hades. She's seen what happened to the Oracle before it moved to Rachel, it would be freaking terrible to have something similar happen to herself!

"Agreed, but I just thought of someone else to help us. You've said you met Leo, so why not ask him? He's one of the best craftsman I've ever met, his help would be invaluable if we're working with heavy machinery."

"Great idea. He's one of the seven alongside yourself, that's more then enough reason to add him in."

"Excellent. Well then, ready to destroy another base?"

"What kind of question is that? Of course I am!"

* * *

Leo and Bianca gathered their supplies quickly when asked if they wanted to help out with the rebellion. Bianca said yes immediately, her thirst for blood is rather high since the last fight and she's craving for more. Leo was even easier when he found out where they were going. He's always been a fan of sci-fi movies, and Area Fifty One is alien central.

"Area Fifty One?! _The_ Area Fifty One?! Of course i'm going with! How in the world could i not?! Count me in, there's no way I'm letting this opportunity go to waste!"

Bianca adjusts her beret and gives everyone confused looks, "What's an alien? Isn't that an immigrant? Why would immigrants have space ships and live in a desert with a funny name?"

"What? No, not aliens from earth. We mean aliens from space."

Her confusion doesn't subside, if anything it gets worse. Bianca has been nothing but confused since the moment she left that damned Casino. Whatever, usually she just pretends to know what's going on and that tends to work out.

"Oh... well, that makes perfect sense." To her, it doesn't at all.

"Great... anyways let's get going. I've got the coordinates for the rebel camp set in the navigator, I don't know how the rebels are handling so we need to head out as soon as possible. I hope you packed for the heat because we're going to be fighting in a desert."

The four person party nods in understatement. Well, all except for Leo. He's fireproof, so heat means nothing to him. The crew all climbs into the helicopter, Bianca summons a pilot and they begin the preparations.

Before the engine is turned on, a voice calls out from outside of the passenger cabin. The helicopter is turned off and Annabeth slides open the door and peeks outside, where she meets the angry gaze of several familiar friends.

"Will? Lou? Sherman? What are you guys doing here?"

Will Solace, the head counselor of the Apollo Cabin and ray of sunshine (his words not mine) rolls their eyes and adjusts a bag over his shoulder. Annabeth looks and sees that everyone else also has bags as well.

"We're coming with, Wise Girl! I can't believe you were going to leave without asking for some back up! Seriously, you get the option to bring more then three demigods and you only take one extra."

Sherman steps passed Will and starts climbing into the helicopter, Lou and Will not far behind, "Yeah, not a really smart plan! Move over hobbit! I call the window seat!"

Leo scoffs and moves over, and soon enough the chopper is full of demigods ready to go out and fight. Samson passes out some headsets to protect everyone's ears and the helicopter takes up off the ground and begins the flight to Nevada.

"Hey, we appreciate you guys helping out but you don't have to! There's still time to turn around and drop you back home!"

"With all due respect Wise Girl, you're not weaseling out of this! We're family! We help each other out when they need it! All you have to do is ask around and anyone would help out!"

"Well, not me," Sherman yells over the loud Helicopter blades, "I just want to fight an alien! Like my hero, Will Smith!"

Samson and Bianca look at each other in confusion, but the rest of the passengers who've seen the movie snicker a little bit and continue chatting.

"We're heading for hot waters! Liberating a military base isn't an easy task! There's a chance people could get really hurt! When we get there, it's going to be another fight for survival!"

"Hey now! I'm the Apollo counselor, healing is the reason I came!"

"I know, I know! Just be careful, alright?! We're heading straight for the fire!"

The newly added demigods roll their eyes and affirm they'll be alright. After all, they've fought in two wars against the most ancient enemies of the gods. Helping out a proper army against another army is nothing new for them, they've been down this road before.

Demigods fight, it's in their blood, and soon enough there'll be plenty to spare. The fight for Area Fifty One is about to begin!


	56. Chapter 56

**A/N: Welcome back to another chapter. We're in for a doozy now, our star studded cast of heroes are going to have fun with aliens. Not really. Sorry to** _ **lie.**_ **Anyways they've got some real fun times ahead of them; a cyclops with a giant bow, a dragon, Lou Ellen being a fan girl, and military shenanigans with dude bros involved. Enjoy.**

* * *

 _Spring 2011_

The helicopter touched down at a makeshift landing zone only a few hours after it left the demigod haven. Dust is whipped up from the fast rotary blades, blinding the few men guiding the aircraft into a landing.

The desert heat is scorching, clouds are absent and the radiant ball of heat blasts the sand to the point it almost feels like glass. Despite the uncomfortable conditions, life flourishes in the form of a large and active camp clearly military in nature.

Light vehicles roam around makeshifts streets, ferrying supplies and troop while officers bark out orders to their subordinates. Despite originating from an organization that deals with advanced military weaponry, the troops within the camp use much more traditional arms.

Swords, spears, maces, axes, even a few light assault vehicles.

Okay, so one of those is not like the other. Anyways, you get the idea. These men operate within the demigod world.

A young man in a tank top and almost scandalously short shorts struts up to the foreign helicopter as the engine slowly dies down. His stance and attitude leave little doubt to the man's importance, after all, every boot camp needs a proper general.

The door slides open and a small gathering of volunteer godlings exit out. The general with his glorious shorts takes note of the visitors Amos informed him about. Three girls and three boys; two children of Athena, a rumored daughter of Hades, a very obvious son of Apollo, what he guesses to be a daughter of Hecate, and a young son of Ares most definitely.

Athena siblings step forward as a duo, both offering greetings to the leader of the resistance. The other guests look around nervously, except for the Ares boy, he's very excited and craving his share of blood and gore.

"Greetings, you must me the general," The boy owlface goes first, his sister continuing after, "Amos told you about us, right?"

"Correct. Welcome to The Camp, the resistances' home base during this war. Amos phoned ahead not long ago, and I'm more then thankful to get some help. Don't let the boys hear that, pride runs deep in our blood."

"Trust me, I've met with the old king," the girl states blandly, "What's the situation here? Amos gave the impression of things getting dire; a successful coup and a dead veteran General."

The new general winces at the memory. He was there when his peer was shot down; assassins dropping from the ceiling and cutting him down with shining swords. There was a lot of blood and a lot of fighting following the death, those loyal had to fight their way out while turned traitors lusted for blood.

It was one of the single most disturbing moments of his life, witnessing people he called brothers trying to slit his throat open for a corrupted revolution.

"…Yeah, something like that."

The guests shift uncomfortably, Annabeth moves the conversation along so as to avoid any more unpleasant feelings.

"My name's Annabeth, and this is my brother Samson. You might know his as The Mystic, if that helps with anything. Here's the crew we've brought along; Will Solace, best healer in Camp Half Blood. Lou Ellen, powerful witch and daughter of Hecate. Bianca Di Angelo, powerful necromancer and our source of extra troops. And here's our little… brawler, I guess. Sherman Yang, son of Ares and expert fighter."

"Wonderful to meet you all. Name's Mill, but here you'll refer to me as General Mills."

Half of the demigod entourage starts snickering, even Annabeth almost lets a snort out.

"Good to meet you… General Mills. Is there a tent or something we can go to? It's kind of hot out here!"

General Mills nods and takes his guests to the command tent. While at first he was apprehensive about the 'help' King Amos was sending to him, his nerves have been somewhat settled by the fact that at least two renown demigods are here to help.

First is one of the legendary seven, that alone would've been enough. But she also introduced The Mystic as another member of their squad. General Mills can't claim he knows much about the figurehead, but he is aware that they beat Champion Lanius and used very impressive magic during the Colosseum tournament.

With firepower and tactical planning like that, Mills is more than confident the _true_ Gargareans will win at the end of this!

* * *

After the meet and greet outside, General Mills took the group into a tent and laid out a map with markings and other notes scribbled all over it. Battle plans, warnings and thumb tacks mark important locations, it's clear to Annabeth much time has been spent pooling over this map.

"What are we going up against here? This map is pointing out some pretty disturbing things just at a glance."

General Mills winces at Annabeth's statement. Gods, she has _no_ idea.

"It's not pretty, and things are only getting worse by the day. At first, after the coup there was around two hundred troops left to garrison the base. However, scouts of mine have reported that an additional five hundred monsters of varying types have been spotted entering the base and cooperating with the traitors inside."

The collective breaths of all visiting demigods hitch simultaneously. Five hundred monsters is not an insignificant number, that's the size of a small army practically! A few beads of sweat drip down the side of Will's face, the healer knows his work will be cut out for him in the following days once the fighting begins.

"That's… disturbing. Do you have any idea where they're coming from? Another location? Maybe from those stupid Donut shops?"

Mills shakes his head, "Negative. My scouts followed the path they took, way up north to the Canadian border. Wherever they're coming from, it's somewhere outside of the Greek and Roman territories."

Samson's eyes narrow. He knows for sure now who's sending the reinforcements.

"It's the Witch in the North, she's the only one with the resources out of country to muster an army like this. How many troops are we working with in your camp?"

"I command one hundred and eighty troops. Mostly veterans from the Gaea war, but I have a significant portion of new recruits, conscripts practically. We've all got arms in some fashion, but our enemies are operating proper heavy weaponry. Guns, bombs, tanks, things we don't have."

"What about that wheel tank outside," Sherman butts in, pushing Lou away and looking at General Mills with stars in his eyes. Mills shivers just slightly, he's very creeped out by the kid.

"Isn't that thing a tank?" He points at an odd looking vehicle through an opening in the tent.

"That thing? It's a Stryker, an armored assault vehicle. Hardly a tank, but as it stands it's the heaviest thing with armor we've got. Well… old Charlie is pretty heavy too!"

Mills lets out a hearty chortle. His guests don't. They have no clue what the hell he's laughing about.

"It's because he's fat. Anyways, The Witch in the North? Fuck, that's a problem. There's been a steady stream of enemy monsters trickling down through the valleys. I lack the man power to hold them off up there and attack the base at the same time. As it stands, all I can manage is hit and run tactics every so often as they pass through, try and kill most of them so the bases garrison doesn't rise too much."

Annabeth hums and looks over the map. After a minute she points at a small note written on the map.

"This note right here. It says that overlooking the valley is a neutral cyclops. If he's neutral, is there some way we can convince him to join our side? We might be able to enlist him to block the valley or help out a small regiment fend off any arriving monsters."

"If you think you can convince him go right ahead. Old Hawkeye cut ties with us ever since the coup. Back before the coup he was our ally. He guarded the northern valley with his greatbow, and in exchange we provided him provisions. I hardly have enough to feed my own men let alone a beast like that. So he won't lift a finger until someone promises him some food, food that I can't afford."

Lou Ellen blinks a few times. She's never heard of a cyclops using a bow before. Mills seems to read her mind before she can voice her question.

"He's an old guy. Far as I know he's old enough to remember when the gods ruled Greece openly. I think he might me among the first generation of Cyclops's Poseidon fathered. He's amazingly polite and articulate, even his old age hasn't affected his skill with that bow. Saw him nail a drakon in the eye from over a mile away one time."

Bianca whistles in appreciation.

"He would be a powerful ally then. Samson, think you could go out and see if you can get him on our side?" Annabeth asks, "See if you can convince him somehow. Try showing him some magic items or something, cyclops's generally like treasures."

She turns to Bianca and Lou, "What about you guys? How many undead do you think you can summon?"

"The most I can do right now is about thirty," Bianca starts, Lou goes after her, "Twenty is my limit if I still want to use a decent amount of magic power."

Annabeth nods and continues her plan of action, "Good, you two will go with Samson and help him shore up a defensive camp out by the valley. We need to hold enemy reinforcements off until we take the base. General Mills, how many men do you think you could reasonably spare?"

"I'll give a squad but that's it. Anymore and we're screwed, but how in the world are we going to take the base with barely a hundred soldiers?"

"If we want to win, then we need to draw the enemy from the base and kill the commander while he's on the field. Samson will handle that, so all we need to do is keep the enemy at bay until the leader is dead. After that the enemy will be without a commander and should fall apart much easier. We'll shore up our numbers with some undead, however. Bianca, Lou! Between the two of you only fifty undead can be summoned. Double it, and no complaining! Nico could summon his own army and he's just one boy, the two of you are more than capable!"

The two necromancers grumble in annoyance but don't argue. It's Annabeth chase after all, arguing with her is like arguing with Athena. You'll always lose.

"I can see if maybe Ares will send some help too," Sherman starts, "I'm not good at summoning much but maybe dad will help? I could ask it as a birthday present or something?"

"If you think you can then go ahead. Will, healing duties are on your shoulders. You're the best healer I've met bar none, we need healthy troops if we're going to win!"

Will nods and does a salute, "Yes ma'am!"

"Everyone has their orders, so get to it! I hate deserts and I want to be in a nice air-conditioned cabin by the end of the week!"

The demigods immediately get started on their duties. General Mills stands by Samson and raises a slightly fearful eyebrow at Annabeth as she studies the war map.

"Holy shit… she's terrifying!"

Samson only nods and pats the starstruck general on the shoulder, "That she is, that she is. Got a jeep or something I can take? I don't want to walk to the cyclops."

* * *

Following Annabeth's call to action, Samson alongside Lou, Bianca and Will borrow a Humvee from the rebel camp and make their way towards the cliffs and valleys that border the northern part of the area around the base.

The trip has them swinging almost fifty miles up north, the wide berth they take around the base is a safety precaution in case the enemy launches mortars or other things at them.

About an hour into the drive Samson points out the cliffs ahead, telling his fellow passengers that to reach the cyclops they'll have to scale the rocks on foot as the pathway is too narrow for a truck.

Being the curious little bug that she is, Bianca voices a question she's had for a while to the green-eyed witch she's sitting next to.

"Hey… Lou, right? I had a quick question, why is it that you came along? Will said that every group needs a medic, and Sherman wants to punch an alien, so why are you here?"

Lou's emerald eyes look side to side suspiciously for a second, before she leans down and whispers to a confused Bianca.

"Honestly, it's because I want to see him," She points discretely at Samson, "I've heard he's a powerful wizard and I want to see if I can learn his secrets!"

"Okay… so why not ask him? Sam's really nice!"

"I can't just _ask him!_ Witches and wizards always guard their secrets, if I want to learn from him I need to prove I'm worthy as an apprentice, and that means I need to steal knowledge from him first!"

Samson's eyebrows shoot up. She wants to steal from him to become his apprentice? What kind of sense does that make?!

Bianca shares the same feelings.

"So… to become an apprentice… you have to steal from him first?"

"Of course!"

"…Okay, doesn't make much sense but I guess I can help."

Samson coughs and gets their attention. He's had enough, no one is stealing his shit any time soon!"

"Look, I can teach you stuff if you want. I probably won't have much time but you don't have to rob me to get my attention, asking is just fine."

Lou blushes in embarrassment but secretly cheers. Now's her chance to _really_ improve as a witch and prove to her mother she's powerful!

"Quick question though, but why learn from me? Doesn't the Hecate cabin have a library full of magic books and stuff."

"It does, but you can only learn so much from a book. No one in camp besides the Hecate campers know anything about magic, so we have to learn more by ourselves or from a teacher _outside_ of the camp. Believe it or not you're reasonably famous to Hecate campers."

Oh? That gets Samson's attention. "Am I? Why in the world is that?"

The witch goes slack jawed in disbelief, "Do you really not know?! Samson, you're a legend! Only a few demigods can use eighth tier magic like you can, any Hecate camper would kill to get the chance to learn from you! I'm a counselor and the highest spell I can use is a sixth tier one only a few times!"

Samson is quiet for a moment as he soaks in what Lou just told him. Is he really that good as a sorcerer? Mori was his teacher after all, so that makes him more impressed that she got as strong as she did without being tutored by another being.

"Well, I did learn from your half sister actually. She's the most impressive witch I've ever met, but I'll do my best to honor her legacy I suppose. I'll teach you some tricks after we handle the cyclops."

Lou smiles and relaxes in her seat, a smile of self-gratitude plastered to her face. Will rolls his eyes and goes back to counting cacti as they pass.

* * *

A few minutes longer in the drive and Samson pulls the Humvee to a stop by a trail that leads to the top of the valley. The quadruplet exits the van and beings hiking up the sandy path.

The path wasn't to arduous, but Samson stressed safety as a single misplaced step could cause one to fall over two hundred feet to their deaths. No monsters or surprise attacks by enemy Gargareans took place during the climb, but Lou did have a scare with a rather upset rattlesnake.

She wasn't bit, thankfully, but the group kept their guards on even higher alert for the rest of the hike.

About halfway up the path a loud _twang_ echoed out from the top of the valley. A fierce roar sounded out once, and then all was silent again.

"What-what in the world was that?" Will looks around nervously, keeping a vigilant watch for an ambush.

"I think… that was the cyclops. Mills said he uses a greatbow, so that must've been him firing it at something."

"Geez, it sounded like a cannon!"

"Well, I guess it's called a 'greatbow' for a reason! Any weapon a cyclops uses must be super-sized, they're like twice the size of people after all."

Everyone shivers at Lou's statement. A cyclops is no simple foe, and one clever and crafty enough to use a weapon is legendary just by himself.

The group continues their journey and arrives at the top of the valley that the cyclops's lookout oversees. To the group's surprise, there is an astounding amount of vegetation waiting for them as the reach the top.

Small trees and even grass grows up there, a larger hut made of hundreds of small mudbricks and thatch rests nicely in the center of the small garden. The building is built for one, but the size of it could comfortably fit over a dozen inhabitants with room to spare.

Somethings groans from inside the hut, followed by the shuffling of a very large thing with heavy footsteps. The demigods tense, ready for a battle, but don't draw their weapons. They need to win the monster over to their side, pointing weapons at him won't help that at all.

The nearly twenty foot door opens up and reveals a massive one-eyed beast wearing homemade fur clothes and a really awesome Stetson cowboy hat.

Samson is surprised to see a cyclops this tall, most only get to be around ten feet or so! Will feels disappointed as his first thought was that the monster looks surprisingly cool despite the outdated style.

Bianca is scared slightly, but the revolver she uses has helped immensely with her confidence in self defense ever since Samson said she could have it. Lou Ellen, however, is just scared. She remembers seeing demigods devoured by cyclops's before, and those monsters were half the height of this one!

Collectively the warning senses of all demigods alarm at once, but the twenty foot monster does nothing but stare at the frozen demigods lazily.

He yawns once and scratches his bottom. He grunts at the intruders and grabs his massive bow, a weapon that's over half his height, and marches towards the edge of his property that overlooks the entire sandy valley.

The monsters grabs a tree-sized arrow and loads it into his bow. He pulls back and releases, launching the huge projectile so far and fast that even Will has trouble tracking its movement.

A previously unseen harpy flying in between the hills of the valley squawks once and puffs instantly into feathers and dust as the cyclops's arrow smashes into it. The giants grunts and sits down on the crash with a heavy thud.

After a second of looking over the valley the monster sighs and faces the demigods, a look of annoyance on his face.

"New bloods, huh? No, don't look like the soldiers down at the base. Camp Half Blood, then. Well, you'll find no quest to be had here. I don't fight godlings or eat them anymore, them days are behind me. This land is peaceful and it's inhabitants are kind, hurry home and leave me be."

The monster talks with an amazing amount of articulation that Samson thought it was a Titan in disguise for a second. The single eye of course crushes that theory as quickly as it was formed.

"S-sorry to bother you…"

"Borges."

"-Borges, sorry to bother you like this, but we need your help. A powerful and evil witch controls the Gargarean base and she's been sending dozens of monsters through this valley. If left out of control the whole region could fall under enemy control! You're an amazing archer and your help could repel the invaders until the base comes under our control again!"

Borges grunts and grabs a felled tree and starts tearing the branches off, "I see. Afraid I'll have to decline. I don't fight wars no more, them days are in the past. I only hunt them harpies because they don't shut up and keep bothering me. Find someone else to fight your battles, now head on home. A large group of monsters is coming and you might be able to escape before they catch you."

Wills eyes widen and he races to the edge and looks out into the valley. Sure enough a large dust cloud is kicked up as what must be over fifty monsters of various horrifying types stampedes through the valley.

"Samson, there's a whole regiment down there! Giants, Hydra's, Harpies, even a Drakon! They're barely a mile away and closing in fast, we have minutes at most!"

Samson runs up to the cyclops and starts pleading with him, begging for the assistance that would save their lives.

"Borges, you have to help! We don't have enough time to reach our car before they get us!"

The monster grunts and looks away, pretending to be busy with making more arrows, "…It's no use. I'm not good for fighting anymore, never was and never will be. Just do your best, godlings always make it through in the end. You're heroes after all, ain't that what you're supposed to be?"

Samson curses and extends his spear into its' full-length form. Borges looks at the spear in shock, causing Samson to flinch from the odd look the monster is giving his newest weapon.

"That spear… I know that spear…"

"You do? I recovered it from a Drakon not too long ago, as far as I know it's called the Dragonslayer spear."

"Aye, I know that much! I made it after all, what kind of dragon slayer doesn't recognize his own work?!"

"Y-you made this?! That… makes sense, actually. Cyclops's are related to storms, at least in ancient times they were."

"Hmm, I made that spear for a Son of Zeus way back in the dark ages, back when dragons were everywhere. You got this from a Drakon, you said? What did the beast look like?"

"Super huge, long as a football field and had hundreds of weapons lodged into his back."

Borges closes his eye and inhales deeply, "…I see… so that's what did him in."

The cyclops is silent for a moment. Will uses his bow and starts raining arrows down on the impending herd of monsters, scoring good kills but not fast enough to kill them all before they can overrun the demigod's position.

"…Borges… I'm sorry your friend died, but he got his vengeance in the end. I killed the Drakon with this very spear, I avenged him. If it'll make you help… then I'll gladly return your friend's weapon to you."

The cyclops is still silent, thoughts and emotions racing through his ancient head. After a few tense moments he opens his eye and meets the gaze of the Son of Athena.

"Demigod, I have made my decision."


	57. Chapter 57

**A/N: Oh yeah, time to fight, time to kill. The Gargarean civil war will be wrapping up this chapter, and the next evil brother will be going down. Also, a fun little bit with a certain forgotten about Son of Hephaestus.**

* * *

 _Spring 2011_

For all it's life, a young Drakon has not known great success. It's never devoured demigods like its greater peers, and it earned no honor during the earth mothers rising.

All the other monsters would mock it and peel its scales away and scar its flesh. But now? Now is the chance to taste the blood and flesh of the filthy godlings! It may be cheating using a small horde of its fellow fell monsters as distraction, but by Tartarus the young Drakon could care less!

The young beast scales the valley walls with fellow beasts, powerful claws ripping into the stone as its even stronger muscles pull the several ton beast along. So close now, the prize awaits!

A few monsters rush over the edge but it doesn't care, it is still bigger then the others! Its head pops over the ledge and it can't help but roar a challenge.

And in that exact moment, a massive tree sized arrow flies into the Drakons mouth with such strength it goes completely through, leaving a nasty visceral hole where flesh and bone once was.

Borges smiles as his handiwork turns into dust and flows away in the wind. By the Gods, he's forgotten how fun Dragon slaying was!

Well… technically Drakon slaying, but honestly they're so close it doesn't really matter all that much.

Another arrow is loaded up and ready to fire at the next big thing to pop up over the ledge. Borges didn't have to wait long; first one large snake head peeked over the edge, then another, and another, and a few more until seven heads of a Hydra hiss in anger as the fat body climbs up.

The blond boy and the death girl blast the bloated beast with a combination of arrow and bullet fire, but a tree sized arrow piercing the body and throwing it back over the edge is what it took to finally put the beast down.

Its several hundred feet down to the valley floor, and the Cyclopic archer is hopeful the fall will kill it if the nine-foot arrow didn't.

While Will and Bianca work as rangers against the enemy horde, scoring good kills and doing a very good job at thinning the horde. Samson and Lou Ellen act as front line infantry against the smaller beasts that slip through the ranged defense.

Lou twirls her Xiphos around and challenges a giant badger to charge her. The feral mustelid growls something fierce and charges her. The witch twirls around the beast with grace like a dancer and drags her sword along the length of the monsters side as it runs past.

The cow sized beast hisses and collapses to its side as viscera spills out from the open wound. Lou feels just a smidge of pity, so a quick thrust into the neck and now the beast is dead.

She spins around and faces a small group of varied monsters advancing on her. The beasts loom at her, dark shadows hiding their features save for the sharp toothy grins of their maws.

Lou, however, is far from intimidated. She's a witch after all, maybe not the strongest there is but she's nowhere near weak. Green fire burns along the length of her sword and a manic grin works its way on her face.

Her emerald eyes quite literally shine with power and the confidence her attackers once had melts away, fear replacing their previous emotions.

Samson sighs and stabs a small hellhound in the mouth as it opens up to bite him. He rips the spear free and swipes an Empousa across the chest as she tires to sneak up on him.

Something feral caws loudly from the sky and around a dozen Harpies descend into the raging duel. Nine Harpies break away from the flock and harass Will and Bianca while three land and advance on Samson.

He takes a few steps back and parries wild strikes from the bird women. All three work in tandem and force Samson to defend rather then attack. Their long and sharps claws act like hooked knives, and Samson is more then aware a good cut from them could easily take a limb off if he's not careful.

Despite the furiousness of the Harpies attacks, they themselves are the ones with the greatest disadvantage. The Dragonslayer Spear is taller then Samson, giving it an amazing reach in combat.

With a quick parry and counter swipe, Samson slashes the center most Harpy across the chest. She screeches in rage and flaps away, throwing blood and feathers everywhere upon her retreat. The two remaining Harpies glare at Samson and fly into the air.

They twirl up high forcefully before angling straight down the claw at Samson from the air like dive bombers.

Samson swears and braces his back leg, raising his spear high and hoping his plan doesn't cost him an arm.

The bird monsters collide with Samson in a tumbling mess, but one of the beasts was unfortunate enough to throw herself onto Samson's spear. The impaled bird gargles vile blood and struggles before going limp and beginning to disintegrate.

Samson cries out as the other harpy stabs her clawed hand directly into his thigh and twists painfully as she rips the claw out, effectively shredding the flesh and exposing the bone.

Happy with her visceral handywork, the hybrid readies for the kill with a raised bloody hand, the very one she used to shred Samson's thigh. Before she could bring it down for the kill, the flaming tip of Lou's sword pierces through the back of her neck.

The bird twitches for a few seconds and looks around, completely still and in shock about the peculiar feeling. Lou rips the sword free and in a smooth motion severs the monsters head from her neck.

Lou looks down at Samson's wound and grimaces at the destroyed flesh, the heavy scent of iron making her gag and dredging up long locked away memories from the previous wars only a few years ago.

"Fuck, gods it's bad dude!"

Samson feels his body shaking and he groans in annoyance. Of course his body just _has_ to be going into shock right now! Sickly amounts of golden ichor pool from the wound and Samson's face begins losing color alongside his fading consciousness.

Lou grabs Samson's head and pours a bottle of chicken and rice tasting liquid into his mouth. Samson grimaces, even though Nectar takes the flavor of your most favored dish _drinking_ chicken and rice is far from a pleasant experience.

The flesh on Samson's thigh begins clotting and Lou can visibly see his flesh slowly stitching together, faster then Nectar should be. She raises a curious eyebrow but Samson waves her off, explaining the handkerchief in his pocket is actually a magic helm with the same passive healing aura as the Golden Fleece.

The daughter of Hecate desperately wants Samson to take her on as an apprentice. Seriously, this guy does well… Magic with Magic! But she understands priorities and calls out for more aid.

"Will! We've got a man down!"

She hears Will audibly curse from the distance away followed by an accusing gasp from Bianca. Lou feels herself about to snicker but holds it back when she's sees the serious glint in the Son of Apollo's eyes as he races towards her.

Lou manages to sneak a glance at Bianca and sighs in relief when she sees her standing in the guard of Borges, working in tandem with the cyclops to nail through the horde attempting to rush everyone.

Will kneels by Samson's wound and places his hand on the flesh, inciting a pained hiss from the wizard. He ignores the pain in Samson and closes his eyes. Heavenly yellow light flows from his hands and merges into the wound, Samson sighs in relief thankfully and Lou watches in amazement as the light dissipates and the shredded gaps in his is replaced with bright pink and raw new flesh and skin.

"There, that outa do it," Will exclaims, wiping a bead of sweat from his brow. He gives Samson a stern glare, "And be careful! The skin and muscles are basically brand new, your leg won't be up to par for at least another week!"

Samson nods absentmindedly and feels at the new skin, shivering from the disturbingly _raw_ feeling of it. Will slaps his hand away and points his finger at him with a glare like a stern mother.

The last stray monster loses half of its face from a headshot via Bianca and dies instantly. She cheers and glances at Samson who gives her a shaky thumbs up. Borges looks at Samson with an odd look on his face, a seeming mix of knowing and nostalgia potentially discernable.

He turns away and sits at the edge overlooking the valley, an aura of content and peace evident from his relaxed body.

Lou helps Samson stand who wobbles lightly but quickly gains his footing and half limps to the forlorn sentry. He glances at his spear in his hands and sighs forlornly. He's going to miss this spear, it's been a remarkable weapon in the short time he's been using it.

"Borges. As I promised, here's your spear back. I hope it reminds you of your friend, he must've been an amazing man."

"That he was, that he was," His voice trails off as his watchful eye scans the valley, counting all of the natural creatures skittering about and hiding in the limited brush and shade.

"Keep the spear. You're worthy enough. Besides, all it'll do is collect dust if I keep it around. Thank you for reminding me what being a hero is all about, it seems I've forgotten in my isolation. I'll keep any more monsters from getting through the valley, on my honor as a former Dragon slayer to another."

Samson nods once and turns around. He knows there's no need for anymore talking, that's just the kind of… man Borges is.

He holds the spear tight as a makeshift walking stick and tells his friends their mission is complete. Next step from here, well only Annabeth knows really.

* * *

"I just got the call from Will. Phase two is ready to go. Our northern defense is covered, all we need to do now is prepare for the final assault."

"That's just it," Says General Mills with a hint of sass that Annabeth doesn't appreciate, "Even if we're covered up north we'll never take the base! We're outnumbered five to one, we don't have the numbers on our side!"

"We don't have to take the base, we just have to get them to come to us. We'll have the advantage of home turf, and they'll be without their own defenses. Get them to come to us, we kill the leader as they're surely come onto the battlefield, and our enemies will be without leadership. That makes them all the easier to route them afterwards."

Mills huffs and looks over the map, "I don't like it. If _we_ get routed, then there's no fall back point. We've survived this long because they don't know we're here. Lose that advantage and we'll be history by the end of the week."

"Trust me, the plan will work. It's our _only_ plan that will work. Battle strategy is in my blood. This will work, it'll be fine."

"Fine. If it's the only chance we've got then I'll take it. I'm just glad that the six of you came. Without your help I doubt we ever would've even had a chance."

Annabeth's eyebrows scrunch in confusion. Did he say six of them? To her count, there should've been seven. Herself, Bianca, Lou, Samson, Sherman, Will and Leo. Oh wait… WHERE THE HADES IS LEO?!

"…Hey, you haven't happened to have seen a short Latino with a pension for fire anywhere, have you?"

Mill's eyebrows scrunch together in thought, "I believe a lieutenant mentioned a new recruit like that… They should be in basic training right now if they're brand new."

Her eyes widen in a mix of shock and horror. She pushes past the general and runs out into the camp. After a minute of running she hears girlish screams and yelling coming from one of the larger tents towards the center of the camp.

She runs into the tent and comes across a humorous yet equally dangerous scene.

Leo struggles in a chair, being held down by two burly men as a third lankier figure attempts to run sheers through his hair. Thankfully he misses as Leo struggles and wiggles around too much, but a few cuts on his forehead show the man (hopefully) accidentally stabbed him a few times.

"DAMMIT YOU FRICKIN ASSHOLES, LEAVE THE HAIR OUT OF THIS!"

"Maggot," The barber sighs, "If you just let us cut your hair you can leave. All recruits get a buzz cut, it's regulation.

"Yeah, good for you baldy," The man frowns, "BUT I'M NOT A RECRUIT!"

Leo's gaze meets Annabeth's and he pleads with the most emotion she's heard ever leave his lips, "ANNABETH! DEAR GODS HELP ME!"

She snaps out of her stupor and runs over to the soldiers, "He's with me, you can let him go!"

They all glance at one another and shrug. The two men let Leo's arms go and the smith instantly wraps his arms around Annabeth and cries tears of relief into her shirt.

"Oh gods thank you-thank you-thank you!"

She quite literally pries the mess of a demigod from her person and gives him a scolding glare, "Where have you been?! We've been literally fighting a war for hours now! Why didn't you get off the helicopter with us?!"

He rubs the back of his neck sheepishly, "Yeah… I kinda… fell asleep. Oh don't give me that look, it was a long flight and I was bored!"

"Whatever. Look, there's equipment around camp that needs fixing. Vehicles, guns, stuff like that. Get them up and running, we've got a big fight coming our way and we need all the help we can get!"

"There's a Tiger out back."

The two demigods jump in surprise. They look and see Sherman sitting on a box and eating a ration pack. His hair is cut like a soldier's and he's even wearing military fatigues like the rest of the men around the base.

"What? I just like the look!"

"Yeah… anyways you mentioned a tiger? What would that help?"

"Not a tiger. Capital T! Tiger! Like the tank you ninnies! I saw it around back. Thing looked rough but Leo's magic with equipment. I say fix that and we've got a sixty short ton beast on our side!"

"Don't bother," The barber says as he cleans off his tools, "Things busted. We raided an enemy caravan and they were hauling that beast with them. The General had the same thought but it came to nothing. It's hollow save for the turret. No engine, no controls. You'd have to completely rebuild it from the inside out, and we don't have the parts for the job."

Leo crosses his arms in thought, "But I've seen the scrap pile you've got out back. I could remake the interior with stuff out there, I'm sure."

The barber just scoffs at the notion, "Sure, go ahead and waste your time. No one's good enough to piece together a tank just like that!"

Leo gives him a cheeky grin, fire literally shining in his eyes, "Watch me! Yo, Sherman! Let's go build a tank!"

Sherman high fives the Son of Hephaestus and the two run through a flap towards the scrap yard. Annabeth blinks a few times but shrugs and starts heading back to the command tent. Leo's a genius, especially with anything engineering.

She doesn't have to worry about him being productive, she knows that he'll get the tank online and ready soon. She just hopes that Mills doesn't try to push the fight before they're ready!

* * *

Of course, Annabeth's hopes for a good and successful plan fall apart by the next day. Annabeth was in the War Room with Mills and Samson when a sweaty and out of breath young trooper bursts in practically screaming bad news.

"G-general Sir! Sir, I have terrible news sir!"

"Out with it maggot, now!"

"Sir! I've just returned from a scouting mission! Enemy forces are currently en route, eta thirty minutes sir!"

The silence was so severe you could hear a fly landing, "Dammit soldier, how did this happen?!"

His trooper fidgets nervously, "S-sir, we were… we were spotted. Enemy spotter discovered our position and during our retreat followed us before relaying our coordinates to enemy base…"

Annabeth mouths 'uh-oh' and glances at Mills. The man is silent, but his face is so red with anger she fears he'll give himself an aneurism. His hand slowly reaches for the pistol at his hip, an action not unnoticed by his scout.

The boy's eyes widen with fear and water tingles at the corners of his eyes. Samson puts a hard hand on the general's shoulder and gives him a stern look.

Mills sighs and takes his hand away from the gun. He practically kicks the scout out of the tent and runs over to the intercom system.

"Attention maggots! Enemy forces imminent, begin Operation Shadowfall immediately! I repeat, Operation Shadowfall is ago!"

The sounds outside the tent is a familiar one Annabeth wished she'd never have to hear again. The sounds of people getting ready for war.

Mills turns to the two half-siblings, "I hope this plan of yours will work! They've got us by the palls and they're giving us a hard _squeez!"_

Annabeth rolls her eyes and leaves the tent to help with preparations. Samson leaves the tent with Mills and walks with him as he stomps towards the vehicle depot.

"Tell me Mystic, what's so special about this enemy Lieutenant? Why do you have to kill him?"

Samson is quiet for a second, "It's because he's my brother. The Witch in the North brought him back to life in a cursed form, empowering him with magic and turning him into a supernaturally dangerous warrior. I'm the only one who's fought with him before, so I'm the only one that has the best chance to kill him."

Mills nods, he has more questions but he's learned sometimes it's best not to ask more then the base knowledge.

"We're heading to the depot. There's some gear I need moved we have stored there."

They stop by the depot and Mills orders some men nearby to carry the strange aged barrels towards the frontlines. Leo stops working on his tank and gives a curious look at the barrels alongside Samson.

"What the heck are in these? Are we going to burn oil or something?"

"Not oil," Mills states smoothly, "It's Napalm. Old stuff but should still work fine."

Samson and Leo unconsciously take a few steps back, wariness practically etched into their faces.

"Holy shit."

"Yeah, I'm with him!"

Mills rolls his eyes and calls them pussies. Leo goes back to working on the tank despite Mills saying it's worthless. Samson debated whether or not to make Leo fight with everyone, but his instincts tell him Leo will come through when they need him.

A soldier runs up to Mills and does a weak salute.

"Sir! Enemy forces have arrived! Sir, enemy commander requests and audience…"

Mills and Samson gain a dark look to their faces.

Twilight is upon them.

* * *

The battlefield is silent as the two facing armies stare one another down. Like night and day, the disparity in size is so apparent it feels hopeless to root for the underdogs.

Mill's army numbers one hundred an eighty regular humans as the core fighting force with another one hundred undead summoned by the combined efforts of Lou and Bianca. Their equipment is traditional Greek style, but there is sprinklings of advanced gear.

A few troops hold assault rifles or pistols, others have heavy machine guns. Overhead the helicopter Ivan stole hovers, rockets and machine guns ready to fire at a moments notice. On the ground is much less impressive heavy gear.

There's one Stryker APC with a chain gun mounting and around half a dozen military Humvees with standard weapons brought to bear.

The enemy's army is over three score larger. The number of humans is just a short amount larger then Mill's, but they make up for it by having an additional five hundred monsters of various types ready to shred flesh without hesitation.

Three modern tanks loom out with heavy shadows, the disparity in advanced equipment running shivers down the spine of the troops unfortunately staring down the barrel.

Monsters chitter and howl, Humans harass and hackle at one another, pointing out individuals and calling out the exact way they'll kill them once the fighting begins.

Slowly an opening reveals itself as monsters clear a path in their ranks. A casually dressed young man with dark brown hair and well combed hair walks from the crowd. His sharp grey eyes meet Samson's with a manic tinge to them as he casually flips two daggers around in his hands.

Samson steps passed Mills and stand across from the brother whose face he hasn't seen for over forty years.

"Richard… doing well for yourself. I see you've lead another coup, only this time it wasn't an accident because you were high."

"I'm a resourceful man, what can I say? Besides, last time was all Mr. D's fault! He never told me that was a special batch he grew exclusively to make you black out high from a single hit!"

Annabeth pinches the bridge of her nose and exhales sharply. She can't believe the legendary Camp Half Blood Civil War happened because her half brother got high from marijuana Mr. D grew!

"Well, despite what's about to happen… it was good to see you again brother."

"…"

"It's okay, I know Mori's forcing you to do this. I'll… I'll free you, all of you! It's okay, _I'm_ okay with this. Don't worry about me, I'll handle it. I'm the big brother, remember? It was always my job, my _duty_ to."

For just a fraction of a second, Samson could've sworn he saw a smile on Richard's face.

Richard raises a knife in the air and calls out to his army, "Soldiers! Kill them all."

Samson dons all three pieces of his mystical equipment. All together, Juggernaut, Oculus and Ram flow intoxicating power into Samson's veins.

He feels the rush and lets himself bask in the power, feeding off the energy his items grant him. A content smile forms on his face and he turns and looks back to the army behind.

"Soldiers! Show these bastards who we are!"

Cheers, roars, screams and hollers echo far out into the desert as the facing armies charge one another with pure blood lust. Guns fire bullets, tanks and helicopters shoot heavy explosives, the opening moments of the battle can be described as nothing but carnage.

In the first volley, thirty men in each army explode in a shower of blood and dirt, but their sacrifices spur their comrades forward until they meet in fierce melee combat.

The close quarters fighting has essentially limited the mechanized vehicles to be nothing more then heavy obstacles, but the advantage of Samson's helicopter allows it to easily launch a few rockets at the enemy tanks.

Heavy cannons swivel around and _blast_ heavy rounds at the helicopter which nimbly dodges them, launching a few rockets in return. A duel, or even a dance.

On the ground the fighting is much less elegant. Monsters grab screaming Humans and tear them to chunks, only to be swarmed by a horde of undead and stabbed to death by an almost literal sea of death.

Bianca summons a constant flow of undead to replace the ones that ironically die again, Lou doing her best to support her by feeding her magic in the form of energy that empowers Bianca's stamina and endurance.

On the front lines Samson and Annabeth work with a support group to engage the enemy forces in a deadly clash of blades. Mills plan for the napalm begins and behind Samson's combat line troops wheel up large barrels and tear the lids off.

With a smooth and elegant twirl, Samson drives his spear point into the liquid and soaks it good. With a quick swipe across the rock ground the spear lights ablaze like the fires of Tartarus.

Enemy troops quickly scatter as Samson swipes big arcs around himself, doing his best to fend off at least a small portion of the enemy forces to give Annabeth's group the chance to kill them while they're distracted.

For a while the fighting is a stalemate, but slowly the superior and disposable army of monsters makes good work of Mill's defense line.

Cyclops's and giants smash through the troops and flatten them with a sickening series of squelching. Samson curses and stops swiping his flaming spear at the humans and instead moves and engages the large monsters from the side.

Samson launches himself in the air and stabs a cyclops directly in the neck. It gurgles angrily and collapses dead. A giant swipes a club at Samson who barely dodges it, but counters with a stab directly into the heart of the beast.

His spear sizzles as the blood inside quenches the fire completely. Another monster is dead, and the distraction helped Bianca's undead swarm the other couple heavy monsters and stab them to death with knives and other small weapons.

The victory is still moot, however, as the Human portion of Richard's army surges forth and clashes with Mill's side of the army. Heavy losses begin immediately, blood soaks the sand red and mimics mud with the amount spread.

The barrels of napalm are knocked over, and the foul smell of chemical fire and iron blood mixes in a disgusting fume that only furthers the intense blood rage between both armies. More blood is spilt, and so the cycle continues on.

With a heavy surge, the enemy army pushes Mill's army several yards back and out of the field of Napalm in the ground.

All starts to seem lost. Mills feels his heart breaking as he fights covered in the blood of the men who held trust in him. Their empty faces and lifeless eyes haunt his mind and force bile up his throat. He steels his consciousness and continues fighting desperately despite the uselessness of it.

Before a lucky Dracanae can run Mills through with her spear, something loud explodes in the center of the enemy army. Fire burst from underneath their feet as the spilt napalm ignites and burns most of the central army to death.

Mills looks behind and sees Leo and Sherman yelling out a cry of victory as the rusty and previously abandoned Tiger races the enemy at full speed. Sherman yells through a toothy grin, and the tank launches another round at the enemy forces.

Leo hops off the tank runs to Samson's side, crushing the skull of a stray monster with his hammer and following it up with a baseball style swing at the head of another monster.

Samson's spear sparkles with electricity and he stabs a good share of monsters until Annabeth's line cuts the enemy off and gives him the chance to rest and gain his breath. He turns around and gives Leo a heavy arm shake, grinning with the shame energy of his savior.

"Leo! I knew you'd come through! That tank is making good work now that they've got nothing heavy left!"

"Hey now, it's me we're taking about! Of course I'd come through in the end!"

They look out at the surrounding carnage, basking in the visceral glory of combat. It's a sickening feeling, but demigods always possessed an innate desire for glory. And what better glory is fighting tooth and nail in a war.

"Not gonna lie man, we need a better plan to pull this off. Even with the tank we're losing faster then they are."

Leo looks at the burning fire and an idea pops into his think pan.

"Hey, can you control fire in any way?"

"Hmm? Well, I'm telekinetic. I can't control I per se, but I can guide it around with some concentration."

"Good, excellent! Alright, here's an idea. We make a fire tornado! You get the fire going, like a cyclone or something! I can control it directly after and guide it around! Then you can rush in and take out the head honcho and score us the win!"

"Leo, my man, you are a genius," Samson gives Leo a toothy grin, "Let's make a fucking fire tornado!"

Combining their powers, Samson uses his telekinesis to cause the fire to form a small cyclone. From their Leo takes control and wills the fire to spin faster and faster until it's an angry raging fire tornado. He guides the cyclone into a mass of enemies and burns them all to death, opening a massive gap in the enemy lines that Samson takes advantage of the hole to race through and into a path straight to Richard.

Samson sees Richard and leaps forward, spear ready to strike. He practically hovers over the ground, but Richard sees the attack and parries perfectly with a knife and brings his other around for a chest stab. Samson angles his body just enough for the knife to graze along the length of his chest.

Richard kicks Samson away but charges immediately and unleashes a flurry of hurricane like swipes and stabs from his twin daggers. Having practiced his sparring with Joseph in the past, Samson expertly blocks and parries the speedy strikes.

The battles slowly winds down around them, but the battle of brothers rages on strong. Samson strikes low, Richard counters high. Richard strike center mass twice, one is blocked but the other connects.

Thanks to the strength of Juggernaut, the blow bounces off harmlessly. Samson is aware of the bruise forming and curses Richard's smart hit. Now each breath Samson takes will be painful, a smart move on his brother's part.

Still, despite the skill of Richard, Samson knows his brother on an intimate level Mori could never hope to achieve.

Richard often leaves himself open when he strikes horizontally. It's such a small opening only truly expert sparring masters would notice it at all.

Dueling with his brothers for most of his life, Samson is very aware of each and everyone's weaknesses.

Samson baits Richard with a faux opening perfect for a horizontal swipe, and just as he plans Richard goes for the hit.

With a powerful parry, Samson knocks Richard's arms away and spins around for a perfect center mass stab. Richard stills as he feels the sickly cold metal slide effortlessly into his flesh.

Grey eyes meet grey once again, and Samson knows he's staring into the true soul of his brother once again.

He catches Richard as he collapses and gently lays him down in the bloody and burned sand. Richard coughs up globs of blood and grabs Samson's hand, a bloody red smile of genuine joy forming on his face.

Richard attempts to speak words, but the steel in his chest effectively rendered him mute. Despite the obvious pain of it, Richard still attempts speech, only to spit out even more blood.

"Sh-sh-sh, we don't need words, not now. It's okay, I'll be fine… Richard, I'm…. sorry. It-it never should've come to this!"

Richard stops his coming speech by putting a bloody hand on his brothers cheek and pulling him close, nothing but joy and fondness shining in his fading eyes.

"I… love…you…love…yourself…"

Each word was so hoarse Samson could feel the vocal cords ripping with every straining second. Finally, on the last word, Richard was no more.

The bright light finally leaves the boy's eyes, a smile still etched on his face.

All around the enemy forces retreat, the death of their leader being the final signal to give up and run away. For all his honor, General Mills is not a kind man. Sensing the enemy retreat, Mills orders his men to pursue and keep killing until they can run no more.

Samson looks around and fully basks in the 'glory' he was drunk on only moments ago.

Bodie. As far as he can see, the corpses of young men who had lives only minutes ago rot in the hot desert heat. The sand is red and sloshy with the spilt blood, far to his right is a black charred mess of corpses that were burned alive by the napalm.

The scent finally hits Samson. Gods, it's _awful!_ Iron, burnt flesh, smoke and the chemical scent of napalm combine in a slurry so foul Samson throws up over his dead brother's chest.

Tears slip down his cheeks as an immense pressure surrounds his entire being, the realization of war crushing his spirit and his previous notions of what it would be like.

Godly blood or no, Samson is still closer to being a mortal than he is a god. He looks over the sea of corpses and weeps.

He weeps until he can, and then he carries on.

There's still a job to do. There's still two brothers left.


	58. Chapter 58

**A/N: Sorry for the long break in uploads, I was super busy with work and this is finally a day off I have to write. We're two brothers down now, just two more to go and then it's finally the showdown against Mori. Not too many chapters left now, I say three or four more and the story will be finished.**

* * *

 _Spring 2011_

Radar technician Markus Redfield has been doing his job for only a short amount of time, and he's damn well proud of it!

Well… he was picked off the streets maybe a couple years ago and he's technically a junior assistant, but the thought still stands!

Anyways, Markus himself is pretty certain when the monitor starts blinking and beeping things may be just a tiny bit wrong.

He taps the screen a few times, just to see of the movies are real, and sure enough the blobs don't go anywhere. Oh boy, that's bad.

"Um… sir?"

A gruff looking man grunts and walks over to Markus's station. His long coat is dirty and smells like cigarettes, however the scent of alcohol mixed in with the other scent makes him seem like a bum rather than a respectable admiral of an old aircraft carrier.

He scratches his unkept beard and looks at the monitor. He squints at it with a stern look, but really he has no idea what he's looking at. He commands a ship for gods sake! They never said anything about 'knowing' things about his bloody ship!

"What the hell is it? What's with the white shite on yer' screen? Clean that shit off! I keep a clean ship around here!"

"A-admiral sir… I can't wipe it off, it's on the radar."

"Oh."

The admiral looks at the monitor and blanches at the number of dots and blobs showing up on the screen.

"That's a lot of things."

He looks out the window just in time to see a small dot in the distance suddenly fill his vision before a fiery explosion consumes him entirely.

* * *

Ornea grins as her gunner scores a direct hit on the enemy vessel's command tower. Without that, the boat is basically a fish out of water. Never mind that it's a boat on the water, but the thought is all that counts.

Annabeth nods at the accuracy and turns to the naiad captain, "I'm still impressed by your crew. It's remarkable for a boat this size to be able to fight against something that big."

"Eh, it's not too impressive really," Ornea shrugs, "A boat like that doesn't have weapons besides aircraft. Get a good shot in and you can cripple them. Especially a boat like that; an old French aircraft carrier from back in world war two. I'm surprised to see it's still floating, a lot of money must've gone in to making it see worthy again."

Ornea continues steering _The Gauntlet_ towards the damaged boat while a few helicopters fly overhead.

"Good thing you got some reinforcements from the Gargareans. The cereal brand guy really pulled through for us."

"General Mills? Yeah, he's an all right guy. What still amazes me is my brother's ability to get on friendly terms with just about everyone. You're correct though, it's still a good thing we got back up like this."

Annabeth watches a helicopter landing on the carrier's deck and unload a squad including Samson.

Ornea glances at Annabeth from the corner of her eye, "Hey, Lass? Is the boss doing okay? I haven't seen him quite like this in a while."

"What do you mean? He seems to be doing alright as far as things are considered."

"No, I mean look at the glint in his eye. Eyes like that, only dead men have 'em. I've seen it before in a hundred seamen, boys see and do terrible things and by the end of it they're like a zombie. Cold, unfeeling, walking a fine line that ends with them in a cold grave."

She sighs and lets the thoughts mull around in her mind. Her brother is on the fast track to getting himself killed. It's not of much consequence considering he's immortal, but still, who knows how long it'll take him to reform? Or even if he'll be the same from a traumatic event like that?

It's all very frustrating. Annabeth considers herself to the one who thinks things through and figures out problems, either in situations or people.

Despite it all, she still has faith, in herself and her sibling. In the words from his very journal; Demigods don't have the luxury to move slowly. They must move forward, that's the only path to take.

Samson has to make himself better if he wants to survive. It's cruel of her to say, but he's responsible for his future _especially_ because he's immortal. She won't be around very long, Samson has to be able to survive by just himself if he wants to keep his sanity.

Still, despite the horrendous trials they've yet to face, she has a good feeling about this. Everything will be okay eventually, a happy ending.

* * *

The cold ocean current combined with the spinning helicopter blades sends a shiver down Samson's spine. He and a small strike crew clear the launch deck of enemy forces and start making their way towards the lower decks.

Once Samson felt sick to his stomach killing enemy humans or demigods, but ever since he burned Richard's body after the battle a few weeks ago he's felt numb to the sin ever since.

A couple humans go to chop Samson to bits with swords, but before the first one can even get in range Samson drives his spear straight into the throat of the closest one. He rips it free, throwing blood out across the deck and meeting the gaze of the dead man's friend.

The other attacker, barely nineteen by the looks of him, goes wide eyed and turns and sprints away towards the edge of the boat, hoping to throw himself into the water.

Before he can get very far, Samson throws his spear and nails the boy in the center of his back. He struggles and desperately tries to pull himself away, begging for mercy as he slowly bleeds out.

He receives none.

Samson rips the spear from his spine and ends the misery with a quick stab to the back of the head. The boy is dead only seconds later.

"Sir, we should begin clearing the ship immediately! We destroyed the command tower but they should have a black box full of data in the lower decks, likely the engineering quarters, that's where a secondary command room would be located."

Samson nods, still looking at the corpse by his feet, "Good. I'll secure the black box, it's likely where we'll find the true commander. Once I kill him we'll go our separate ways. Sink the boat or keep it, I don't care . Tell Mills he can keep the chopper, I don't need it anymore."

The trooper nods and does a respectful salute even though Samson is not a commanding officer in his tribe, "Sir!"

He leaves with the rest of the squad and Samson is left by himself with only a corpse he made as company. Samson sighs and lets the horrible thoughts ring in his mind.

Is this what he's really become? An unfeeling, uncaring murderer? He could've let the boy go, he was nobody. But he killed him all the same. And what makes Samson feel unease is that the act didn't bother him.

His morality is slipping, he can feel it. Slowly as the days and weeks tick by he finds himself losing his previous self and becoming something new.

When he saves Mori, will she still love him? Is he even the same man she fell in love with all those years ago?

Maybe, just maybe, it doesn't matter. She's changed, that's for certain, and so has he. Together, maybe the two of them can figure things out, if just for a minute.

The Fates demand Samson allows himself to be destroyed if he wants Mori to stay safe. Even an immortal can die it seems.

He shakes his head and turns towards the heavy steel door leading to the lower decks. Now's not the time to be forlorn! There's still another brother Samson must free!

* * *

The interior of the lower decks is eerie and just slightly disturbing. The lights are dim, the halls are crowded, and loose wires and rest decorate in between. Samson can imagine this being the perfect location to film a horror movie or something.

A giant squid, maybe? Or if he wants to get classical a Siren could be the villain or something. A singing bird-beast stalking the halls hunting the main character who must constantly keep his ears covered by something.

Samson steps over a corpse killed by the Gargarean squad moments ago and reads a small plaque with arrows and labels pointing the different sections of the ship.

"Engineering deck… red arrow," Samson sees a dull painted arrow leading from the plaque and figures it's a handy marking system for new recruits, so no one gets lost.

He follows the arrow for a while, making haste through the maze of corridors until he finds himself in a large room just by the engine bay. Along the way he encountered several bodies, none alive, and silently thanks the squad for them making it easy to get around the ship.

His brother is no where to be found, so Samson guesses he's either somewhere else in the ship or he's not here at all. Dammit! He sees a computer at the far end and decides to investigate. Maybe it'll have some information about his brother?

Samson approaches the old computer attached to a small but compact orange drum-like device. He feels the sturdiness of the device and reads a label on the top.

Voyage Data Device. This must be the black box!

Thankfully the computer is unlocked, so he opens up a file containing the journal of an engineer and starts reading.

"May 10th, Chief Engineer. Lieutenant from the boss arrived this morning. A big man with grey eyes. Said his name was Steven."

A twang of pain strikes Samson's heart. Steven… the first brother to try and convince him to take better care of himself when he was younger. He was… he was the first one who really cared about him after his father died.

"May 14th, Chief Engineer. A new person was sent from the boss. Thought it was Circe at first, but she introduced herself as a witch, a lamia to be precise, and was to monitor Steven for any faulty behavior."

So a Lamia was here too? Why in the world would she have to monitor Steven if he's been enchanted to be completely loyal to Mori? Months ago Laila mentioned that a Lamia was working with Mori on something, so this must be the very one.

That said, then where is she? Two important figures were supposed to be on this boat, and not one has been found so far. What the Hades is going on in this place?!

"May 31st, Chief Engineer. Holy Shit! The Lamia and Steven took of this morning! They stole a chopper and just left, no words or anything! When the boss found out she was furious, the two of them were traitors all along! We were ordered to track them down, but they sabotaged our other choppers before they left. By the time we got them fixed they were long gone. Wherever they are they're far inland now. Our best reports say they landed somewhere in a forest in the Midwest."

Samson exits the program and sits in a chair nearby. His expression is unreadable, but the shine in his eye betrays nothing but concern.

Steven… betrayed Mori?! No… her magic is too strong for someone to just simply break out of it. It must be the lamia then! Another witch that could've subverted her control and stolen Steven right from under her nose.

But… why? Steven has no special powers, nothing like that. His greatest skill was weaving and clothes making, and there's no power to be had in that!

Something rattles behind Samson, and in a blink of an eyes he has the point of his spear pressed against the throat of a cowering man hiding behind some pipes.

"Who are you?! Answer me!" Samson presses the spear just a hair forward and the man whimpers and holds his hands out pathetically.

"W-wait! I'm the engineer! Oh gods, please-please don't kill me! I-I'll tell you everything, just please don't hurt me!"

Samson narrows his eyes and keeps the spear pressed firmly against his throat, "The lamia and the Lieutenant, where are they?!"

"T-them? I-I don't know! We weren't charged with finding them," Samson applies pressure and a small trickle of blood leaks down his neck.

"WAIT! I-I overheard the lamia talking about something before she left! She mentioned something about a swamp full of witches, and that she was there before with a bunch of other people forty years ago!"

Samson knows the place the man is talking about immediately. Of _course_ the place the lamia chose to go to was the same one Samson went to when he rescued Mori from Laila and her sisters.

The Okenfenokee swamp! The ruins of the lamia's mansion! It's a perfect hiding place, no one knows about it and magic permeates the whole area. A witch could use that place to hide herself, or in Laila's case years ago, set herself up in a position of power.

"Thank you for the information, it's very useful," With a quick thrust, Samson's spear pierces all the way through the man's throat. His eyes widen for a second before they go dim and he involuntarily slides off the spear tip, hitting the rusty floor dead.

Samson sighs and runs a bloody hand through his hair. Things have gotten even more complicated. He turns and heads back to the top deck. He's got to get back to camp quick and get his van, there's another road trip ahead for him.

* * *

A week of sailing home after the attack on the aircraft carrier, the crew of seven finds themselves back home at Camp Half Blood. Everyone sans Bianca, Samson and Annabeth returned to regular camp duties and activities upon their return.

Honestly, Annabeth can't blame them. The past couple weeks were pretty tough, and the huge battle in Nevada really brought up some bad memories of the wars with Kronos and Gaea.

Even she herself secretly wants to throw in the towel and just let Samson handle things from here on out. But there's no way in Hades she'd let someone, especially her brother, do something like that by themselves!

Also, she's basically committed to this now. She'd be a huge dick to throw in the towel without seeing things all the way through. Call her a hypocrite for getting on Percy's ass about not getting in danger… well, don't do that actually. She'd judo kick your ass into next year.

She meets with Samson by where his van is parked and sees he's working on fixing the damage it took from the helicopter at the depot base. The ripped up heavy armor he attached to it lays off to the side and she can visibly see the despondent aura around him.

The body of the van is torn, and worst of all, the paint is ruined. Are those… tears? Yeesh, poor Samson. Guess that whole thing about men and their cars is true then.

"Hey… you doin' okay there buddy?"

He turns to her with tears in his eyes. His lip is even quivering a little bit. Yup, so that's a solid no.

"Okay… anyways… where's the place we're heading to next, Okenfenokee, right?"

"Y-yeah," He wipes some snot from his nose, "It's a swamp in Florida. I went there once forever ago to save my girlfriend at the time from some lamia. Well, Laila, technically."

Annabeth grimaces at the name then does so even more with her next thought, "We should probably get here out here. If she lived there then she'll know about the dangers that could've moved in since last time you were there."

Samson nods and leans over to yell at the magical drapes that lead to his home.

"LAILA! GET OUT HERE!"

Annabeth hears someone audibly groan from inside the curtains. After a few moments later the curtain is swiped to the side and the near Circe lookalike steps outside with everyone.

Her hair is tied in a messy knot and she's wearing an oversized band shirt and old leggings. She has a shitty looking taco in her hands and she's tearing bites out of it enthusiastically.

Huh… can vampire-snake ladies eat tacos?

"Hmpf," She swallows her bite, "The fuck you want? I'm busy doing chores and shit cuz' I'm your maid, remember?"

Annabeth and Samson glance at the taco in her hands as she finishes off the last bite of it.

"Whatever. Look, Laila, our next stop is the swamp you and your sisters used to live in. Have you heard of anything going on in there? Monsters and crap like that?"

She taps her chin in thought, "Hmm, been a while. Honestly, with us gone all kinds of monsters would've moved in if one of us wasn't there to chase them off. Whatever that might be I don't know, though if it's a swamp then there's likely to be at least one hydra. Maybe even a semiaquatic drakon, who knows?"

Laila starts undoing her messy knot before snapping her fingers in realization, "Oh yeah! Probably gonna be a huge bunch of giant spiders too. We had a big Shelob-like thing as a pet a while ago, and if we're not there to control the population she probably took over the whole forest."

Samson and Annabeth still, a chill shiver running down their spines in sync. D-did she say spiders?!

"Yeah, spiders. Big things, like, _Tiger_ sized mother fuckers."

Annabeth grabs her sword and holds it close. Samson opens up his flask he hides in his jacket and takes an unhealthy swig.

"And momma Shelob is even bigger! Last we measured she was twenty two feet across, but she's sure to have gotten bigger by now!"

"Okay dude fuckin stop! We get it, witches have big ass fuckin bugs as pets!"

Laila rolls her eyes and hides her shit eating grin but does so poorly. Annabeth glares at her and tightens her grip around her sword. Laila just grins even wider with her pointy teeth.

"Guessing you dweebs need a guide, huh? Well… fuck it, why not? I need to get some crap I left at the old mansion anyways. Go nab a canoe, we're gonna need it for the wet areas of the swamp.

Annabeth sighs and heads towards the lake to… _acquire_ a canoe from the store house. Samson goes back to fixing his van while Laila sits back and watches him as he works. Her eyes are hardened, and her expression is nigh unreadable.

"How many did it take?"

"Pardon?"

"How many bodies before you stopped caring anymore?"

"…"

"It's easy to tell. After all, I've got a pretty high count myself. Personally for me, it took four before I stopped caring about it. I was a young girl, and my mother forced me to feed on the local humans to survive. I remember the first one, a young boy I fancied quite a bit. The look of betrayal on his face hurt for a few decades, but I got over it. Looking at you… I say it was a dozen before the feeling became numb. Congratulations, you're more like me then your pretty little sister over there."

Samson punches the ground and stands up in an instant, getting right in Laila's face with a thunderous expression.

"Shut up, you're a monster! You wouldn't know anything about it at all! All you do is hurt people and laugh about it, it's all you'll ever be able to do!"

Laila is totally unimpressed by Samson's outrage. She's been around for centuries and has faced down many more impressive people before. A short, girly Child of Athena? That's nothing to her.

"Okay, nice try at being scary. Also," She leans in close so they're almost kissing. Samson meets her challenge and doesn't move away, trying to show her she can't push him around.

Her pupils thin and become cut and angry like a snake's, "I'm the only one who _can_ understand you now. I'm immortal too, and I've been around a hell of a lot longer then you. If you want my advice? Then stop letting yourself get distracted by your morals. Things are different now, _you_ are different now. Get your girl back and stop complaining to me, I'm the only friend you've got who won't die in a couple decades."

She steps away and waves her hand over the bullet holes in the van. Slowly the metal mends and the holes disappear completely, leaving the metal looking good as new.

Samson looks away from her and goes back to working on the van with the woman he once called an enemy… and now begrudgingly calls a friend.

* * *

"Hey, Samson?"

"Yes Bianca?"

"If you had a clone of Hitler… would you feel bad about torturing it?"

Samson passes a slow-moving car on the highway and continues driving his van to Florida. It took a few days, but Samson and Laila fixed the van and alongside Annabeth and Bianca started the few day's drive to the swamps Laila used to live in.

"If it's a clone then no. That Hitler's didn't do anything."

"What?! No he totally did! He's still a bad guy!"

"If he is then that's because he learned to be that way. Actions are learned, not genetically inherent."

Bianca scrunches her eyebrows in confusion and starts thinking of her response.

"Okay, but he still has all the thoughts and memories though! So like he basically still did it!"

Samson thinks on it for a second, "No, I would still argue they're different. I mean your neighbors could be having these thoughts too and they're not Hitler! They're just an asshole!"

"Yeah but they're still a bad guy!"

"Well of course they are! Anyone who has thoughts like that isn't a good person!"

Annabeth pokes her head through the curtains and gives the bantering demigods a curious look.

"Uh… what's going on guys?"

Bianca turns to Annabeth with fire in her eyes, "Okay, here's a hypothetical. If I made a clone of Percy and he fell in love with me, does that mean he's still the same as the original Percy?!"

Annabeth blanches for a second, "What?! I mean… no, I'd argue they're different people. The clone hasn't really been through _everything_ the real Percy has, so he'd be a different person."

"Okay, but what if the real Percy died then?"

"Huh… you know, sticking with my guns I'd still say they're different. Though I'd be _irrationally_ upset. Besides, I'd count on your good will and friendship not to do that to me!"

"Yeah Bianca, that's kind of a dick move to do to her. She's in mourning for Hera's sake!"

"W-wha?!" Bianca reels back in shock as Samson and Annabeth giver her fake glares before busting out laughing.

Suddenly a shoe hits the back of Annabeth's head and an angry Laila yells out from somewhere inside the house.

"HEY! SHUT UP AND END THE GODS DAMN CHAPTER ALREADY!"


	59. Chapter 59

**A/N: It's spider time.**

* * *

 _Spring, 2011_

The great swamps of Florida are an amazing abundance of life and culture. Lifeforms of all kind call the swamps home, sharing the space with a local population of sub-humans called 'Floridians'.

Cultures are rich, language is intricate and beautiful, and tying it all together is the beauty and bounty of mother nature and her creatures.

Still, despite the wonders of swamp life, seeing the corpse of an alligator hanging fifteen feet off the ground and wrapped completely in spider webs makes the whole previous David Attenborough monologue mean absolute jack shit.

"Yeah, fuck this," Annabeth spins around and starts marching back to the parked van. Samson calls out pitifully in an attempt to keep her around.

"Annabeth, wait," He whines, "Don't go dude!"

"Yeah, unless you're a lil' bitch or something." Laila sneers at Annabeth behind her back and waits to see if the Daughter of Athena will take the bait.

Annabeth spins around and glares at Laila with almost literal fire in her eyes. Laila grins, she won again.

"No, fuck this! You've got to draw a line in the sand dude! You've gotta look inside yourself and say 'What am I willing to put up with today?! NOT FUCKING THIS!"

Bianca looks between everyone with anxious eyes, "Hey guys… let's just get along… I think four of us will be better at dealing with the monsters then three!"

She glances hopefully at Annabeth and she sighs and turns back to stand with everyone.

"Alright, fine. Let's just get this over with! Last time I dealt with a giant spider I fell into Tartarus!"

"And how was that?" Laila asks with just a _hair_ of sarcasm.

"It was awful. Horrible, actually. Enough about that crap though. Laila, what's the path we're taking?"

Laila stands by the canoe Annabeth stole-I mean borrowed, "Quickest way is through the water. It'll take us to a dry piece of land and after that we've got more hiking. If we start now we'll get there by nightfall. Don't look over the water, the gators here will grab your head and drag you under."

Bianca shivers, Samson goes a little pale.

"Then, as we can see, the spiders have grown out of hand if they're ballsy enough to attack an alligator. Not sure if the big one is still around, guess we'll see. Keep lights on at all times when night comes. The spiders hate light. Also, ignore any voices you hear out there. Loved ones, dead friends, those are fake. The big spider mimics people you care about to draw you in, like a Siren but less hypnosis."

Annabeth looks like she's about to vomit, Samson's not far behind her. Laila rolls her eyes and calls the siblings pussies before sitting in the canoe and motioning to the water with her hand.

"Well, get a move on! We need to get there before it gets too late!"

* * *

The sun is high and hot in the air as the quadruplet group slowly paddles the canoe through the winding and muggy channels of water. Insects buzz around and harass the group, ticks, leeches, other various bloodsuckers try and latch themselves onto the unfortunate group.

Annabeth worries they're going to get lime disease, but Laila dismisses her claims. She says they'll probably get something worse.

She's much more vigilant in her bug hunt after that.

"So Laila, we haven't really talked much before."

"Yeah, for a reason."

Samson rolls his eyes, "We've got a few hours, why not pass the time talking? So how's it like growing up as a monster? Is it really different from people?"

Laila's quiet for a moment, "It started out regular I guess you could say. Mom fed me, clothed me, taught me until I was about eight. Then things changed, that's when she started having me drink blood. At first it was animals, then when I was fifteen I drank the blood of my boyfriend. After that… well that's when I embraced my heritage."

"So why haven't you gone back to your home, or even try to find your mother and your other sisters?"

"Eh," She shrugs, "I got bored with it all. Scheming, back stabbing, that's all mother and my sisters care about. 'Destroy Olympus', 'subdue all humans' that kind of crap is boring. You seen the shit the put on TV nowadays? That shit's much better then anything else."

"So you're going to spend the rest of your immortal life watching television?"

"And eating Ben and Jerry's."

Annabeth rolls her eyes and continues paddling. The group is quiet for a moment, but Annabeth thinks of some curious questions and decides now's a decent time.

"As demigods we're told monster's are basically just concepts given form, that they represent Western culture's barbarism and will always exist so long as the West does. What's it like from a monster's perspective then? Why is it that monster's hunt demigods so vehemently?"

Laila taps her chin and looks up to the sky, "Huh, never really thought about it. I guess it just comes down to our nature. Monsters are basically destined to crave mortal bits from birth, hence the name. I see it as a curse, really; things greater then even gods want entertainment, so they kick rolled the evil nature of monsters. After all, they have an eternity, so why spend forever watching heroes fighting monsters? Entertainment in the simplest form, it seems."

"Huh, that's kind of… disturbing."

"Primordials are above human and even godly concerns. This whole world is basically just a playground for beings we'll never comprehend."

Annabeth looks away in thought, automatically paddling in sync with Samson as the horrible realizations of where she exists on the cosmic scale is fully realized.

It look like Lovecraft had the right idea about humanity meaning nothing in the grand scale of things?

Bianca sniffles a few times.

"Okaaaaay…" Samson draws out, "Anyone want to sing a song or something? I've got a mist card with a guitar in it, and I play some mean folk songs!"

"Ugh," Laila practically yells, "Anything but folk! The rednecks that lived out here in the swamp would blast that shit all night and day! No matter what I did they wouldn't freaking stop! Every time I talked to them they would hit on me and offer alligator steak. Do you know how boring alligator steak gets after eating it for over a century?!"

She huffs a few times as she calms down from her rant and leans back in her seat, "Play some music, guitar boy."

Samson hands his paddle to Bianca and activates the mist card he keeps in his jacket pocket. It puffs in milky white smoke and leaves a fancy, vintage nineteen sixties Gibson acoustic guitar in his hands.

He strums the strings a few times to get a feel of it. He tunes it for a second, and then slowly plays a nice and calm song like something out of an old western film.

Annabeth and Laila don't recognize the song, but decide to hum with it anyways. A few minutes in and they ad lib lyrics to go alongside it, both harmonizing fairly well with one another. Even if the witch and the demigoddess hate one another, they put it aside and let the music flow through them.

" _Lay down old boy put your head down to rest, Wait ti'l the morning and start over again. It can't be far now until we find our home."_

Bianca watches the impromptu performance with a big smile on her face. When she was young, her mother would always sing to her when she asked, and often times she would join along, never mind her singing voice isn't quite so good.

" _I've seen a lot out on this road, I'll keep on moving til' I know… The way back to the place that I call home."_

A twang pinches her heart as she thinks to the other member of her family she hasn't seen for years. She misses her annoying little brother, the way he would talk excitedly about his stupid card game… and grin at her with wide eyes and a stupid grin on her face.

" _You stuck on our shoe's from a long time ago, We walked a lot of miles through the sun and the snow, And now I know we're close to finding home."_

…She has a lot to apologize for, hasn't she?

Samson taps her shoulder to get her attention. She looks at him with wet eyes, but he smiles fondly and seemingly gives her encouragement with just his eyes only. She smiles graciously and wipes her eyes and starts singing along with everyone.

She can do it, she can find her home.-

* * *

Nightfall was finally upon them. They tied their canoe to an old stump and began their journey on foot through the darkness.

Despite having a well formulated plan, Samson can't help but feel frustrated with the whole thing. They don't even know for sure if this is where Steven and the mystery lamia have gone! This whole plan is based on the second information Samson got from the engineer back on Mori's boat.

This whole thing could be for nothing!

That would be a kick in the balls by the Fates. Usually things flow nicely during quests, like it was written by a big nerd of an author or something.

But this? This feels like it could be just a giant joke from three old hags that like messing up people's lives!... Kind of. Fate is much less… _fate_ if you have the smarts to see it so. No wonder they hate him so much, he saw through their lies.

" _Samson… I love you."_

He stops dead in his tracks. Annabeth bumps into him and voices a complaint, but he shushes her and turns his flash light out into the darkness of the swamp. Annabeth catches on and does the same, scanning through the trees for any sign of movement.

Laila curses and holds her hand in the air. A glowing ball of light the size of a basketball forms above her head and hovers over her. It provides good light in a ten-foot radius around them, but past that the light is almost seemingly consumed by the darkness of the night.

" _Annabeth… I'm proud of you… you're my_ _ **favorite.**_ _"_

That was Athena, Annabeth heard it clear despite the sound being nothing higher than a faint whisper.

"Laila… there's voices out there…"

The witch gulps silently and narrows her eyes at a particularly large shadow only a creature with night vision like herself could see.

"Yeah… it's Aranea, the big spider I told you about. She'll mimic voices to try and lure you in, saying things you desire in their voices, so she can snatch you up. Whatever you do stay in the light! A single foot in the darkness and you'll be taken in a blink of an eye."

Bianca holds her gun close and stands between Samson and Annabeth, using them as a sort of meat shield.

"She hates light. Stay in the radius of my spell and we'll be fine."

The three demigods nod and stand near Laila much to her chagrin. They all unsheathe their weapons, just in case, and continue the journey to the ruins of Laila's old home.

"What's the story with the spider then? Where in the world did you get something like it as a pet?"

"Arachne," Laila deadpans. A shiver runs down the spine of the Siblings of Wisdom at the mention of the name.

"She came to us one day and asked us for help. She wanted 'greater' children and offered us a great prize, a spell to summon and bind Kampe."

"So that's how you managed to have her in that hole in your basement. I'm assuming you tried the same with that demon horse too?"

"Correct," She nods, "And in return we created a spider that grew to enormous size, and so would the spiders she sires as well. Our hubris, however, got the better of us. Even with over a dozen witches, we couldn't control Kampe _or_ that fuckin' horse! That's why I kidnapped your girlfriend back then. We sensed her strength and wanted her to help us bind the beasts. She resisted, so I threw her mind into that alternate reality. Then you came along and all of our plans went to hell!"

"Yeah, I'm not apologizing for it. You were doing terrible things and tried to kill me and my friends, it was my duty at that point."

She waves him off lazily, "Yes, yes, big hero man. Either way, Aranea has clearly taken control of things in the time I've been gone. Look up, at the trees. You'll see what I mean."

They all look up, and Samson and Annabeth almost scream in fear, only _barely_ holding their emotions in check.

Up above, connecting every leaf and branch for as far as their limited light can allow, is thick and milky spider webs, the silk being so thick it could be used reasonably as a rope.

"That's… that's…"

"Horrifying, right? We spent hours everyday keeping the webs in our swamp in check. Guess now we know my sisters never returned to this place, they never would've put up with it looking like this. Careful now, we're in Aranea's domain from here on out."

" _Bianca… I love you… I forgive…"_

Said daughter of Hades shivers as the voice that sounds _just_ like Nico. Her feelings are more then just a little hurt, she knows it won't be near as easy to get forgiveness from Nico even if she's his older/younger sister.

"Ignore it, we're almost there. Just through the trees."

Laila whacks some brush away with her sword and the group finds themselves in an expansive and open area, maybe twenty acres in size or so. Samson is surprised to see that the fissures of fire that the horse made when it attacked him still burns even forty years later.

"Holy… it's _still_ burning?" Laila watches the fire with careful amazement. Gods… that horse was _way_ more dangerous then she'd ever thought it could be! She will never tell him, but she's actually fairly grateful for Samson interrupting their deeds. Who knows what could've happened to her if Kampe and the horse got ahold of her?

"…Let's check out the ruins. If they're here, they'd be in the basement of the mansion if it still is stable."

Annabeth looks out across the fields of fire and sees the ruins of several houses, with a particularly large one standing at the top of a small hill overlooking the rest of the ruins.

There's no spider webs to be seen in the area, so Annabeth assumes the spiders have a fear of fire. She keeps that in mind for later incase things go wrong.

Slowly they make their way through the maze of crisscrossed fire, carefully avoiding the low flames as occasionally the spurt out small fire balls into the air. The heat is fairly nice as a counter against the cool night air, ironic considering the hellscape around them.

Eventually they end up at the ruins of the large mansion. The wood is rotted and burned, vines and plant growth wrap around the old beams and the nasty smell of all of that combined makes the party gag.

"Oh gods, that stinks!"

"Ugh, let's just head inside. The sooner we're inside the better. Watch the floor, I doubt it's held up well."

Samson pushes the rotten door off of its' hinges and out of the way. Slowly they work their way inside and through the barely standing halls. Most of the walls have large holes as if something tried to break its way inside, and somehow they still stand for the most part.

They enter the ruins of the kitchen and Samson stops everyone, "Look, the dust on the floor."

Annabeth drops down and sees that the dust has been disturbed before them.

"Someone was here. Recently too. Everyone be careful, we have no idea what's in here," She glances at Bianca, "Put the gun away. If you shoot it chances are the entire forest of spiders will come down on us."

She huffs in annoyance and puts the gun away in the holster, instead replacing it with the bow Samson gave her.

He glances at the bow as realization suddenly crosses him, "Hey, I just realized… you don't really use the bow I made for you anymore, do you?"

Bianca shrugs and glances down in annoyance at the bow, "Yeah… the gun is much more fun!"

Samson looks offended, "Gun my ass… there's no fun in it!"

Annabeth winces at the statement, "Better not say that out loud."

"What, why?"

"It's a whole other story," She looks at the reader and winks, suggesting another story with a certain gun toting Son of Eris.

"…What the hell?"

* * *

Laila opens the basement door and slowly makes her way down the stair, feeling each step carefully to make sure it won't collapse beneath her feet.

The stairway is as dark as the darkest midnight, and even her light spell won't illuminate much passed her. Even if it's been over forty years, Kampe's dark presence still haunts the place. Laila shivers, yeah, it's a good thing she was spared Kampe's wrath!

"Watch your step. It's several hundred feet into pure darkness!"

After several minutes the finally end up on the hard rocky surface of the edge that overlooks the pit Kampe was once trapped in. Annabeth glances down the pit and feels her heart race, quickly backpedaling until her back is touching the wall.

Her breathing is erratic as the memories of falling into Tartarus race back into her mind. The horrible feeling of Arachne's web wrapping around her ankle, the horrible, crushing feeling of watching Percy allow himself to fall with her… The guilt and fear of watching her silly Seaweed Brain turn dark and almost kill a goddess with her own poison.

Samson grabs her shoulder and shakes her out of her flashbacks. She blinks a few times and calms her heart beat down with some breathing exercises Chiron taught her.

"I'm-I'm okay… I'm okay…" The last word was barely a whisper, "Thank you. Let's just-let's find out what we can and get out of here, _please?"_

Annabeth pleads desperately and Samson nods, pushing Laila to continue their exploration. They traverse the deep darkness for a while longer and see a small light flickering from the shadows.

"There, look! Everyone be quiet, we can sneak up on them!"

They group gets low and slowly sneaks to the light, everyone holding hands as Laila's light spell disperses and leaves them in the darkness.

Samson feels the ground ahead for any holes, and thankfully he finds none as the climb up a small ledge that looks into the room the light in emanating from. He peeks in and sees that someone has a bonfire burning, and a body is laying with their back faced to them on a cot wrapped in blankets.

He scrunches his eyebrows in confusion, why would they be wrapped up like that if they're laying next to a fire?

Samson has the group wait behind him as he slowly lowers himself into the room. He looks around and sees that it looks like a makeshift alchemist's laboratory. The equipment looks like high quality, even more so then the gear he has in his home!

Whomever is using this as a base knows their stuff. He sneaks to the body, dagger at the ready, and reaches a hand out to it. Before he can grab the shoulder, he feels a heavy hand grab his own and squeeze.

He glances over his shoulder, but is thrown violently into the stone ceiling before he can make out anything. His back smashes into a stalactite and he falls hard onto the stone ground beneath him. Samson groans in pain and grabs the back of his head. The hairs on his neck rise and he quickly rolls to the side on instinct.

A heavy sword smashes into the ground he was just in, and goes for a another smash to try and split Samson's head open. He rolls away again and pushes off the ground, tackling his assailant with a heavy slam.

The attacker grunts in surprise, and Samson can tell it's female from the pitch. He wrestles with the oddly dresses girl and yells over his shoulder.

"A little _help_ please!?"

His friends quickly jump over the ledge and brandish their weapons at the struggling attacker. Samson himself struggles to hold the enemy back, their strength being surprisingly strong considering his immortal blood also makes him physically powerful.

"Gah, let go dude! This is _really_ inappropriate!"

Samson stops fighting them as he recognizes the voice, "Daisy?!"

* * *

Daisy sits across Laila by the fire, returning the fierce glare her eldest sister is giving her. Bianca looks back and forth between them and compares their looks. For an older sister, Laila looks _exactly_ like a more mature Daisy.

Her emerald eyes are more sharp, and her expression seems more defined where Daisy has a more rounded look to her face and her eyes are much softer, even as she glares. Daisy's wearing a cute sundress with a flower patterned leggings, giving her a more childish, botanist image then a witch.

Laila is almost a complete counter despite having a near identical body. She wears a deep red blouse with dark jeans and boots, making her look like a refined woman with a attitude problem. Honestly, that's about her in general.

"So, little sister, how's the hippie life treating you? I mean you _have_ to be one with that tacky outfit?"

"How's the prostitute life treating you? I mean you _have_ to be one dressing like that!"

Samson holds Laila back as she tries to lunge over the fire and tackle her sister, "Alright, enough! There's children in the room!"

Everyone looks at Bianca who waves shy at the attention. Daisy huffs and crosses her arms, returning to glaring at her sister.

"Fine, I'll be good. Speaking of, Samson! You're back!" She reaches around and wraps Samson in a bone crushing hug. Samson blushes lightly and returns the hug.

"Hey Daisy, good to see you again. Where've you been? I couldn't find you!"

She pushes away and punches his shoulder, giving him a mild glare, "I should be asking you that! Last I heard you went to Olympus then never came back! Mr. D kicked me out of camp not long after and I fell out of contact with Mori until recently. Suddenly she's some criminal mastermind and was bringing your brothers back to life! She hired me to oversee some experiments but when I saw what she meant…"

Daisy shivers in fear, "Samson, she's violating the sanctity of life. She resurrected your brothers and enchanted them to become slaves. I met one and managed to break the spell but…"

She turns her gaze to the body wrapped in blankets, Samson following her line of sight, "The spell rebounded. He's cursed, or something similar. Slowly his body's dying, and nothing I do can help. He won't wake up or eat, nothing I do can get him to react. I came here to try and work a cure in safety, but nothing's working. Samson, I-I'm… sorry."

Samson reaches over to the body and pulls the blankets from their face with a shaky hand. Slowly he reveals the sandy brown hair and pained expression of the kindest of his siblings.

"Steven… I'm sorry," He reaches out and gently caresses his brother's cheek, tears slipping down his cheeks as his heart feels like something is physically grabbing it.

He wipes the tears from his cheek and turns to Daisy with a grateful smile on his face, "Thank you… I really mean it. It's… it's okay, we can let him rest now. Thank you for your hard work, but he deserves Elysium. Do you have something? Anything to make it quick and dignified?"

Daisy opens up a satchel and hands Samson a needle full of clear liquid with a shaking hand, "Here… it's poison. It's fast… he won't feel a thing."

Samson nods forlornly and takes the needle. He finds a vein in Steven's arm and presses the needle in, injecting the liquid to the very last drop. He holds his brother close and feels his chest, counting the beats as the minutes pass until he can feel it no longer.

He holds the body close and lets his tears fall down unabated. Once Samson felt like the world was ending each time he's had to do this… but now he feels little. He can still feel sadness, but it's not as crushing as it once was.

And that's when he feels fear. Fear that even his siblings dying in his arms doesn't affect him any longer. Is he becoming a monster? Or is this what it means to be immortal?

Daisy sits by his side and wraps an arm around his shoulder, giving him comfort as he tries and fails to make himself shed more tears.

He sits there for a while as everyone waits patiently, everyone, even Laila, giving him the respect of their silence.

After a few minutes he lays the body down and wipes the snot from his nose, "Okay… it's done… Let's go home, I don't want to be here anymore."

"What about the body," Laila asks, "Are we leaving it here?"

Samson thinks about it for a second, "We'll burn it and leave. We can't carry the body all the way back, the spiders out there would know and come after us. It's safer to leave it here."

Daisy and Annabeth helps Samson set up a small memorial for the body, leaving small trinkets and such from around the room to act as a goodbye present. When all is done, Laila snaps her fingers and her magic green fire covers the body.

Samson watches it burn for a minute, but turns around and starts marching back to the stairs. It's best not to dally, the longer they stay in the swamp the more dangerous it becomes.

* * *

The cool air is crisp, soothing Samson's nerves as his mind still races with the horror of his new-found morality. The group exits the ruins of the mansion and stands outside, breathing in the cold air and letting it refresh them for the journey back to the van.

Daisy's decided to go back with Samson. She's been lonely the past few decades and having a friendly face around is a wonderful change of pace. Despite being around Laila, she's actually rather happy. She's quite relieved he's not mad that she couldn't save his brother, and was _very_ surprised to learn he accidentally turned himself immortal, and that Mori's been possessed by the former Titaness of the Moon.

Samson goes to say something, but stops when he hears something crack and break behind one of the ruined houses own the hill. He examines the old wood, and through the darkness he sees something long and thin slowly hide itself behind the ruins.

Annabeth looks at the other buildings and sees more shadows moving and hiding behind them. Long and thin… and hairy just like a…

"SPIDERS!" Annabeth and Samson scream at the same time, causing the three others with to violently shush them. The siblings wince and immediately feel embarrassed.

They all wait and see if anything horrible happens. After a minute nothing occurs, but as soon as Samson takes a step the old ruins explode with action. Nearly twenty massive spiders, the size of tigers, jump from the shadows and hiss.

Their fangs are like swords, their bodies covered with fleshy carapace, and wiry hairs loosely poke out of their bodies. The spiders click their fangs together and slowly crawl towards everyone with eight dainty and careful legs.

Annabeth feels herself go green and turns around and hurls behind an old log, Samson doing the same to a nearby bush.

Laila bares her fangs and summons a flaming sword, rolling her eyes at the antics of the two demigods, "For gods sake, stop being babies and help us kill them!"

Fire forms in her free hand and she hurtles it at the spiders like a grenade. It flies through the air and explodes one spider like a mortar, kicking up a surprising amount of dirt.

Daisy summons her own fire and begins mortaring the spiders alongside her sister, trying to one up her with kills. Laila glares and begins throwing more fire in response, both decimating the spiders while trying to prove who's stronger.

Bianca rolls her eyes and draw her bow back, launching arrows into the eyes of the monsters dodge the fire bombs. She glances back and sees Annabeth and Samson still vomiting.

"Oh my gods, will you two help out! We might die!"

"Just," He upchucks some more, "Just a minute! Oh gods it's really fuckin' gross!"

Bianca huffs and goes back to shooting more spiders. Quickly they kill all twenty of them, but the trees rustle as screeches off in the distance shriek angrily. Dear gods, more are coming!

"Annabeth, Samson! Come one guys, we need to go!"

The two named demigods stumble and move themselves groggily with the rest of everyone behind Laila as she guides them towards the canoe.

A few faster spiders manage to cut everyone off of the coming horde. Samson stabs a spider that went for him with a girly shriek, and Annabeth finished it off by stabbing it straight in the eye with a roar like a Viking warrior.

The whole ferocity thing is lost when she screams 'Gross and weird!' and desperately tries to flick the spider blood off her sword.

"Quickly! We're almost there!" Laila throws fire behind them and catches a tree on fire. Daisy catches on to the idea and starts lighting more trees on fire as well, hoping a spreading micro-forest fire will help deter the spiders.

"OH GODS! WE'RE GONNA DIE!" Bianca punches Samson's back, "Shut up and run!"

The trees overhead shake, dark shadows jumping from tree to tree as more of the horde catches up. Samson steels his courage and extends a hand out to the horde. His hand glows with alabaster light and it explodes outward in a big explosive arc.

Samson's Sunburst spell throws waving arcs of divine light that collides with the spiders, throwing them back and burning their eyes blind from the intensity of the light. Annabeth and Samson cheer with far too much vigor and continue running from the surviving horde.

Just before they can reach the canoe, Samson is suddenly tugged off of his feet and swung high into the air.

He screams as his body is spun around and reveals nearly twenty blood red eyes on a massive gangly face of a spider hiding in the shadows. The fangs are as long as his arms, and inside the maw is thousands upon thousands of needle-like teeth.

The massive beast nearly grins as a guttural and snakelike voice rumbles through the air.

" _Hssss Fresh meat caught in my web… Blood of that_ _ **bitch**_ _Athena runs through your veins."_

Samson goes to scream, but the bus sized spider wraps him up in webs just enough to cover his mouth and binds his arms and legs.

"Hey! Aranea, let the dumbass go!"

Laila yells up at the now named Aranea that hisses in displeasure and hides Samson on the underside of her abdomen. Samson muffle-screams as he sticks to the coarse and sticky hairs underneath.

" _Hssss Broodmother has no power over me! They left's us alone, and we grew strong. Stronger than the mother!"_

Laila furrows her eyebrows and bares her fangs at the beast, "You've grown arrogant Aranea. Arrogant and fat. Bianca, now!"

Bianca launches an arrow and hits one of the twenty eyes. Aranea hisses and grabs Samson, holding him in front of her face as a makeshift human shield.

Laila curses and Daisy keeps a vigil watch incase any of the smaller spiders try and sneak up on them.

"Bianca," Laila whispers, "I'll keep her open. Hit the hand in the joint holding Samson. You grab him and I'll hold her back!"

She nods and readies her bow, keeping a close aim at the joint of the spider's leg.

"Okay, okay! We'll play it cool. What do you want in exchange for the idiot?"

" _Nothing! Blood of Wisdom is delicious. We want more, give us the other and we'll leave the rest alone. Only the infernal spawn of Athena!"_

A few beads of sweat drips down Annabeth's face as she keeps a fierce vigil of the massive spider.

"God you're even a bigger bitch than I remember. Good thing you're still an idiot even now!"

She throws a weak wave of fire at the spider. Even though nothing but a slight heat hit the spider, the beast reacted as though she were stabbed in the heart. She throws her legs out wildly, exposing the weak, fleshy joint on the arm holding Samson.

Bianca launches her arrow and scores a direct hit in the joint. The weak flesh is cut nearly completely, severing the tip just enough for it to drop Samson twenty feet to the muddy ground. He grunts as he hits the ground, and Annabeth runs to his side and uses his spear he dropped to cut the webs.

Aranea shrieks and lunges at Laila. Bianca shoots another eye and midjump Aranea curls up and smashes into the ground just by their feet. Before the spider can gather her wits, Diasy and Laila jump onto her abdomen and stab their fire swords deep in, releasing a putrid scent from burning spider flesh.

Quickly four of the legs grab the two lamia and toss them away, Daisy smacks into a tree while Laila is thrown into the water.

Aranea spins around and bares her fangs at Annabeth and Samson, only to take another arrow into the eye by Bianca. She rears up and screams, and in that opening Annabeth and Samson both grab his spear and drive it into her gut together.

They're swiped to the side by her legs, and quickly they roll away as her front two legs, both covered in sharp spikes, smashes into the ground they just were. Annabeth is on her feet first and _smashes_ her sword into one of the legs.

The legs is halved in length, and she works her way to the next one. She ducks under a lightning quick swipe from one of the spike legs and rolls forward under the abdomen. She stabs upwards and buries her sword hilt deep inside.

Quickly she rips her sword free and jumps away as the body crashes down on the dirt. Samson comes around the side and stabs Aranea in the joint you could call the neck, releasing a cloud of black blood.

He gets smacked away by the spiked arm, and he barely manages to dodge away as she leaps at him. Aranea turns to him again, and takes another arrow to the eye by Bianca. The spider hisses again and prepares to charge Bianca when suddenly a burst of green fire collides with her back.

She screams in pain as the fire spreads and slowly pulls herself away into the shadows. Daisy and Laila decide to get the point across and continue hurtling even more fireballs at the retreating monster until she vanishes completely in the shadows.

Samson and Annabeth come to their sides, clutching their weapons like a lifeline and gazing nervously out into the unlit swamp.

"Is-is it dead?"

"Unlikely. She's probably ran away, and if we're lucky then her surviving children will hunt her down and eat her. An injured queen is a weak queen. She won't survive passed tomorrow."

The Children of Athena breathe a sigh relief and work their way towards the canoe.

"God damn, I hate Florida!"

"It's Florida dude. Weird shit happens here all the time. I can see it now; Local tourist gets attacked by a big ass spider, cries like a bitch."

"Fuck you dude, spiders are awful!"

"Whatever you say dude, whatever you say."


	60. Chapter 60

**A/N: Hey guys, important notice here. Just gonna come out and say it, this is the second to last chapter. One more after this one, and after months of writing Henosis will be a project completed. It's been an amazing journey writing this story, the only one I've written and posted before, and I'm happy and sad to see it go. No worries though, my best pal TheTruehero and I are working together on a sequel once I'm completely finished. I'm excited for you guys to see it, I think you'll be more than pleased with what we've got in the works. Enough of the sappy messages, we've got a final battle to prepare for.**

* * *

 _Spring 2011, Beginning of the Last Battle_

How long has it been now? Honestly, Samson has no clue. Since his impromptu resurrection by the hands of Mori, so much has happened.

The reclamation of his lost artifacts of power, the bonding with his new sister and taking on a student learner as a pupil. Finding new friends, losing old ones, the discovery of who his past life truly is. It all adds up, especially when he's tasked himself with saving his wife and earning her a pardon.

Somehow through means Samson has yet to find out, the Roman Titaness of the Moon, Luna, has risen from fading and hijacked his wife's mind. Add on to that the Greek counterpart being his past life and orders from the Fates calling for his permanent demise, and even a genius such as Samson is lost and more than a little emotionally imbalanced.

Four out of five resurrected brothers have been returned to Elysium where they should be, leaving only one unaccounted for.

Thomas. The painter of blood and the most dangerous demigod Samson has graced before. The best fighter in Samson's cabin when he was young, Thomas is enigmatic, psychopathic, and wholly unpredictable.

And Samson thinks he's being held up with Mori.

Samson is sure he can handle Thomas by himself, his magic has improved by vast amounts ever since he became immortal, but Mori is a whole different subject. She's a daughter of Hecate, a daughter of Magic so talented that she's still an inspiration to her half siblings even decades in the future.

Her strength is absolute, so much that she can control the mind of Annabeth, and if she really let her powers go on the loose he's sure she could take on Thalia or Percy in a one on one fight and handle herself well. Whether she would win is a different debate, but he's certain fighting her would be like fighting Thalia all over again, only this time he'd be in a fight for his life, not sport.

If he's forced to face both, Samson is not sure he'd be able to win. And with the intel Samson and Annabeth have gained from destroying Mori's last bases in the lower U.S., her last base is a veritable bastion with a garrison of monsters in size and strength that hasn't been seen since the battle of Manhattan.

There's no way he'd be able to handle sneaking in, even with a strike force of the combined might of the strongest demigods alive currently.

That leaves only one option…

He's going to need an army, and a big one at that.

There's a few choices he can think of even just right now; The Legion seeing as how Reyna owes him one, Hunters of Artemis if he can convince Thalia to convince Artemis, General Mill's growing garrison at Area Fifty One, his nieces in the Hesperides's Garden, Borges if the Cyclops archer can be convinced, and all the various nature spirits if they'll still recognize his title as 'Friend of the Nymph's'.

If there's one thing for anyone to take note of, it's the lack of help coming from the Greek demigod side of things.

That's for a reason.

Samson has done basically nothing to prove he's worth following into another battle for his Greek kin. The most he's done for the camp has been negative things. He's the source of an inadvertent curse on Cabin Nine, and when he returned from the Sea of Monsters with Eris's help he unleashed his telepathic powers and forced his emotions onto the entirety of the camp.

Even if he's accepted, Samson knows he's no hero they'd be willing to follow.

Tallying up the access of all of his assets, Samson believes he can perhaps muster over four hundred troops for the attack, perhaps another hundred if Bianca can summon undead with some help from Laila and Daisy.

That gives him a reasonable force of five hundred rounded down to attack Mori's stronghold, a base he estimates to have almost two thousand beings standing guard.

Even if a demigod by themselves is worth several weak monsters in a fight, they're still outnumbered four to one, and if Mori uses her magic then they're at even more of a disadvantage.

To be able to win at the end, then the demigod army must use everything they have at their disposal in just the right ways.

While it may seem needles to attack an enemy so soon after a war, it's vital that they do so. An army of monsters like that should never congregate, it'll only grow in strength until they're ready to attack. And it's likely they'll be able to win with overwhelming numbers on their side.

Essentially, it's for the mutual survival of the two demigod camps that they wipe out the enemy horde.

Still… Samson just can't find it in himself to ask Chiron for help in this.

He's been tasked by the gods to defeat Mori, so that means only through right to lead can he triumph over the Titan.

That leaves the question… just how is he going to pull this off?

Well first things first… he's going to need to acquire an army. And that all starts with a visit to his old friend and self-proclaimed 'queen of Rome'.

* * *

Reyna looks between Annabeth and Samson as they wait for her answer. It's not an easy one, as it should be. They only just recovered from the war with Gaea, and to be asked to fight another one, even if it's just one battle, is an incredibly difficult thing.

Samson brought her to Camp Half Blood via use of a magic handheld mirror, and after throwing up for a minute straight she was bombarded with a huge bombshell of a revelation.

"This army… you say it's from the Witch?"

Samson nods numbly, "Yes… The Witch has amassed an army in Alaska, and we know where it is. She's held up at the end of a valley with a massive fortress as her base. We estimate there's two thousand monsters there, and more are sure to arrive by the day. If we're to ensure our safety as demigods, then we must destroy them before they kill us all!"

Reyna curses and retreats back to her thoughts. Dammit! Of course she has no choice really, what fool of a leader would simply allow such an army to grow?

"Gods above I'm going to kill you one of these days… You have my support, damn miserable sorcerer! What's the plan then? We're going to need more than the Legion to handle a siege."

"Exactly why we're gathering support," Annabeth starts, resting her hands on the marble war table, "We believe we'll be able to gather the help of a Gargarean clan numbering over a hundred. Samson is allied with Nymphs and nature spirits, his nieces are the daughter of the Hesperides and their strength alone will be a tremendous asset. Bianca can summon perhaps a hundred undead if given the strength by supporting witches, so that brings us up to a hundred troops."

"We'd still be hopelessly outnumbered. Sieging a stronghold with inferior numbers is a death sentence."

"Exactly why we're gathering _powerful_ allies! The Legion by itself has the tools and the training, supplement numbers with individuals of quality and the size difference will be balanced out."

"Quality over quantity… the true way of Rome. Fine, then we'll need to gather the rest of your help and set up a base in Alaska, something sizeable yet defendable to deter an attack by the Witch."

Annabeth places a map on the table and points at an odd plateau overlooking the valley leading to Mori's base.

"Here, it sits up high and has a view straight into the valley. If they try and attack we'll see it coming from literal miles away. We'd have the height advantage, so bombs and arrows would make short work of anything trying to attack."

Reyna has to give it to her, Annabeth knows her war strategy. She still finds it odd how Athena is a war goddess considering Minerva is not. Truly a shame, if she were then the Legion would be even mightier! Too bad old Rome was so sexist, of course the old men wouldn't let a goddess as important as Minerva have domain over war!

"Then we have at least an _idea_ of a plan. Fine enough, now we just to gather up the rest of this attack force of yours. I'll send a message to Frank and get him caught up, have him start readying the Legion. Meanwhile I'll stay here and plan things out with Annabeth, we can get a proper plan-"

She's cut off by a sudden large BOOM followed by the sounds of someone yelling in pain. Samson curses as he recognizes the sound and races outside to the archery range, Annabeth and Reyna right behind him.

They arrive at the archery range nearly seconds after the boom and stumble upon something right out of CSI. Blood. Lots of it, and a nearly teary eyed young girl codling over a strange blonde haired boy clutching his leg with a massive bullet hole in it.

"Ahhhhhh! Godsdamn it hurts! Why the hell did you _shoot_ me?!"

Bianca sputters a few times, trying to get her story out. When she finally does, Samson can't help but bring a hand to his face. Of _course_ his pupil has to embarrass him like this!

"Y-you freaked me out dude," Did she just say dude? It looks like Samson's era of slang is rubbing off on her, "I thought I was being attacked!"

"I JUST SAID HELLO!"

"I'M NERVOUS!"

"I GOT SHOT!"

Reyna recognizes the blonde boy and gives him a faux look of dissatisfaction, "Really, Jason? She's like, _eleven!_ I thought getting hit by bricks left and right was embarrassing enough, is your new thing getting shot by little girls now?"

His electric blue eyes glare at Reyna, and Samson _swears_ he's seen eyes exactly like it before.

"T-thanks for the jokes, Reyna, I really appreciate it!"

"Is that sass? Jason Grace you've really grown up, my poor Pontifex is all grown up!"

He rolls his eyes and takes some nectar a nearby medic brought for him and takes a healthy swig, "We've already been over this, I'm retired from the Legion. Half Blood is my home now, even if the council voted me to be Pontifex I wouldn't actually show up."

Reyna's fake displeasure becomes the thinly hidden real thing, "As you say. _Really_ think about this, Jason, a Pontifex is what the Legion needs."

"Remember the last one? Or even the old emperors? The Legion needs power split between people, but enough of this. I've made up my mind, now help me up!"

Reyna rolls her eyes and pulls Jason to his feet, roughly punching his shoulder and making him wince. Samson finally connects the dots and asks Jason the question on his mind.

"You wouldn't happen to be related to Thalia Grace, would you?"

Jason turns to him, "You know my sister? Who are you, by the way?"

"Samson Akira," He extends a hand, "Otherwise known as The Mystic to most."

Jason's eyes widen and he takes Samson's hand in a surprisingly firm handshake. Samson feels tingling, like electricity in the air, and finds himself surprised that the boy has an aura even stronger than his sister.

" _The_ Mystic? I heard things from Percy, but seeing it's true is a whole other level!"

"He's a fan boy," Reyna says to Samson, "Has been since he was young. Most young boys at the wolf house are, you're a well-known legend."

Jason blushes lightly, "It's a good way to keep morale up. Anyways, first thing is what we're going to do about _her._ "

He points at Bianca who fidgets as everyone stares at her. Though Samson's look of displeasure almost makes her cry. She can feel it… he's disappointed.

"Bianca," He starts slowly, "Hand it over."

He's thankful she has the pride not to argue or play dumb and passes her revolver right over without so much as a word.

Samson takes the gun and hides it in his jacket. He looks at her neutrally for a few moments longer before he turns back to Reyna.

"Now that that's settled, I suppose I'll be off. I've got plenty of things to do before we can move out the troops."

"Troops?" Jason questions, "What's going on around here?"

Reyna and Annabeth glance at one another. They've got a hell of a story to tell.

* * *

Samson looks out at the strawberry fields, letting himself be caught up in his old memories. He knows he should be heading out, but he finds himself desiring some small amount of time to relax before running into the fire again.

Now that he thinks about it, what ever happened to the giant Karpos that grew from the strawberry fields all those years ago.

As if to answer his question, the ground in the field bubbles up as a giant green-haired baby-esque things slowly rises from the ground like a demon straight from Tartarus.

It yawns once, the jaw opening impossibly wide and showing off a maw full of razor like teeth. It turns and looks at Samson, a single red eye staring at him while the other is milky white and clearly blind. Guess it never healed from when he shot it with his old bow?

"Holy shit… What. The Hell. Is that?!"

Samson turns and looks as Jason and another dark-skinned girl stares at the monster with wide and amazed eyes.

"That thing? Long story. Yeah I'm surprised he's still running around too, thought he was put down _years_ ago!"

They look at him with expectant eyes. After a few awkward moments Samson picks up on the hint, "He grew in here forty years ago. Demeter kids decided not to manage the fields and it grew out of control. Eventually a karpos grew in there unchecked for years, must be why it's so huge. I think we started calling it King Strawberry."

The mystery girl and Jason stare at him dumbly, "Damn… glad I wasn't around for that."

"Yeah, it wasn't a good time, miss…?"

She extends a hand, her kaleidoscopic eyes sparkling with an oddness to them, "Piper McLean, but just Piper."

Samson squints his eyes and takes the hand, "Aphrodite, right?"

She twirls a finger around the feather in her hair and gives him a coy smile. Jason frowns and crosses his arms, instead starting a staring contest with the Karpos out in the fields.

"Right on the spot. We were hoping to catch you before you left. Jason wants to go with you."

Samson looks at Jason, "You do? I appreciate the help, but why? I'm going out to do some serious fighting, don't you want your chance to rest?"

He sighs and rubs the back of his neck, "I do, don't get me wrong. But this is important, our lives are at stake even if a lot of people don't think so. I'm just one person, but I'd like to volunteer to help out."

Piper snorts, "I think it's because he's a fanboy and just wants to be close to you."

Jason glares at her, she just smiles and puts her hands up, "Sorry to say this, but count me out of the fighting. I've had enough to last me a lifetime."

"Fair enough. Actually, can you pass a message on to Annabeth? Tell her to see what we can do about King Strawberry, she'll know what I mean."

Piper raises an eyebrow but shrugs and turns around and marches back to camp.

Jason watches her leaves with a sadness in his eyes. Samson notices, but decides to keep quiet. Whatever happened between them must be pretty heavy, Samson does make a mental note to learn more about them. If he's going on the battlefield with Jason, then at least knowing _something_ about him is reasonable.

"Well, shall we be off?"

Jason nods once, eyes still fixed on Piper's retreating position, "Yeah, sounds good."

* * *

"Your brother… had children with the Hesperides? _All_ of them?"

"Not all, one of them was a Hunter of Artemis. He wouldn't've touched her with a ten foot pole even if she offered."

"Got a problem with Hunters?" There's a small pint of venom in Jason's voice. Samson figures it's because his sister is one.

"Personally, I do. Their code is flawed, and they're arrogant beyond belief. Honestly I'm surprised Artemis lets them act like that, they're supposed to be representing her to the world. And as far as I see they're universally disliked by monsters and demigods alike. When it comes to Thalia, I respect her. Quite a bit actually, she has a clear head and doesn't allow herself to be brainwashed."

Jason stares at the back of his head as they continue their climb up the ruins of the old Titan fortress. Jason blinks a few times as he remembers faint memories of being here before. Of Legionnaires fighting hordes of Titan minions, of blood and friends lost, of defeating a Titan in combat.

They're…awful, if he's being honest. Being a Roman soldier, it takes its' toll on your mind. Jason finds himself lucky he's not psychopathic like some soldiers he knew. Many lose their morality and become like beasts, violent, blood thirsty, the perfect lifelong soldier.

If he's being honest, he's lucky he managed to find his way out of the legion with honor.

"So we're here to get your nieces to join the fight, but we're going out of our way for them. Are they really worth the trouble?"

Samson sighs and rubs his arm, "They're… a handful, but being granddaughters of Atlas means they're incredibly powerful. I saw them wrestle Ladon down not long ago, power like that will be an amazing asset. There is one other thing, however, and that's their influence. They'll pass a message along to other nature spirits as they travel to the campsite up north. Any spirit willing will follow them, helping us to bolster our numbers and provide aid with their magic. I'm expecting mostly Satyrs, but they'll handle the cold better than Nymphs."

Jason does a good job of hiding his shock. Just like Annabeth, Samson shows he's got an excellent mind for planning things in the long run. Most would just accept what they could get right now and move on, but Samson plays things over long periods of time.

He would be a fantastic Centurion, or even a Praetor.

They approach the edge of a pine forest and Samson sighs, preparing his body for… Something.

"Girls… I'm back."

Before Jason can even blink Samson's on the ground, a dozen girls in chitons made from pine needles pining him down and giggling like school girls.

"Uncle's back!"

"I knew he'd be back!"

"Can we go to your house now?"

"Who's the blondie?"

"I bet he has a cute butt!"

"Spin around, we want to see!"

"Yeah, give us a show!"

Jason sputters a few times an blushes. Samson sighs and wriggles his way inch by inch from the Nymph huddle, "Leave him alone, girls, he's got things to worry about."

Samson meets Jason's eyes, and in that moment Jason realizes Samson's ability to read someone from body language alone is incredibly skilled.

"I _am_ here to take you home, but we've got things to do first. Uncle's got some business with an evil witch and wants your help. Think you can meet me up with my friends at Camp Half Blood? Maybe brig along some friends of yours to help me out?"

The girls are quiet for a second before they all simultaneously don maniacal and toothy grins, pure bloodlust sparkling in their volcanic eyes.

"A fight?"

"Death! DEATH!"

"Yay! We get to kill some more people!"

"Oooh I'm so excited!"

"Let's bring the Satyr slaves with!"

"Yeah, they're good fodder and meat shields!"

"Let's go!"

And just like that, they're gone, leaving two stupefied boys in the dust, literally.

"Holy Jupiter… they're scary…"

"They weren't… they weren't violent like that last time… I think combining Atlas's bloodrage with my brother's insanity was a bad mix."

"You think? Samson, those girls were scarier than an angry Juno. I'm just glad they're on our side… I think?"

"They love me, so I guess they'll do as I say? Ah fuck, I promised them they can live in the forest around my house! I'll have to deal with them forever after this!"

Jason pats Samson's shoulder, "That you do, that you do."

* * *

Annabeth has spent the past week formulating plans and strategies with Reyna; the base goes here, tents go there, guard posts and defensive structure go here and here.

That sort of thing.

Over the time she's been busy, more and more messengers have been arriving at camp from various factions around the country, each promising either supplies, troops, or equipment.

The biggest group was some odd fifty nature spirits currently at home in the forest. Samson's psycho nieces act as their leaders, representing the nature side of the growing army.

Chiron and Mr. D were quite upset that CHB was acting as a gathering point for most of the alliance's forces so far, but so long as the guests don't interfere with camp activities and provide for themselves the directors allowed them to stay.

Today, however, is another day she's quite happy about. Not long-ago Annabeth talked with Thalia over an IM and asked her for help. Artemis's lieutenant told her to expect whatever she can get in a few days, and if none showed up then the answer was no.

Seeing Thalia climbing over the hill with a big smile on her face and a dozen other hunters brought great elation to Annabeth.

An elite squad of Hunters with Thalia as commander will be an unbelievable handy asset for the coming fight. Their arrows and skill at a distance will be a decisive factor in taking out enemy archers on the bastion towers.

"Thalia," Annabeth exclaims as she runs up and hugs her smaller, older friend/sister, "Glad you could come!"

Thalia laughs a few times and separates from Annabeth, "I wouldn't miss it for the world! Samson really grew on me when we fought in the ring, he's a good man. Though I won't lie, My Lady wants to make sure you have the backup you'll need to take out the enemy. The gods are forbidden from direct help since Zeus demands it acts as a trial for your brother, but without our Lady we can act independently as help."

One of the Hunters snorts about being called 'help' but a quick thunderous glare from Thalia shut the salty maiden up.

"This is as much as we could spare. Our numbers have barely recovered from Orion, Our Lady has been forced to recall all of our cross-country lookouts until we can recover our previous numbers."

Annabeth frowns as she recalls the horror of what happened to the Hunters, the almost total annihilation Orion wrought. It may take decades, or even centuries before the Hunters can gather up enough girls to maintain a high population again.

"Thalia, I'm sorry about what happened."

The daughter of Zeus nods sadly and musters her self-assured grin again, "No worries, that's our problem. _Your_ problem is something else, which is why I'm here."

Annabeth nods in affirmation, "Right. Currently we're gathering up an army. Soon we're going to be heading out to Alaska, that's the new rendezvous once the Legion and the Gargarean clan we met begin moving. It'll take time, but we need to be as quick as possible. Every day more monsters arrive at the Witch's base, we need to strike while the population is low."

Thalia's face tightens, "Then my girls and I will head out. We can get a base camp started, clear out any monsters and act as scouts until everyone else gets there. Girls! We're moving out!"

Annabeth hands her a map leading to the location Reyna and her selected, "Good luck Thalia, I appreciate it, I really do."

She smiles, "We're sisters, of course I'd help out! See you up north. Hunters! Move out!"

The squad turns and sprints away almost impossibly fast, heading north to the tundra wastes of Alaska. At their current speeds, Annabeth figures they'll be there by the end of the week. And she knows from first hand knowledge they'll get fantastic work done while they wait for the rest of everyone else.

"They're amazing. I'm glad we'll have their help."

Annabeth turns and sees Reyna watching the hunters vanish into the forest, "Help like that and we won't even need more soldiers."

"They're some of the best. Though having just a _bit_ more numbers on our side will make me much more comfortable with this whole thing."

Reyna glances at Annabeth, "By the way… why do you care so much about this? You have a deeper connection to this than trying to keep us safe from a known monster armada."

Annabeth collects her thoughts and experiences. It's a question she's pondered for a long time, and no matter what she thinks she comes to the same conclusion in the end.

"He's family, and he needs help. If Percy, Jason, Nico or anyone I knew was in his position I'd do the same thing. When my friends need help I'm there, committed and ready to give it my all. I'm not selfish enough to say I'll help out then bail when things look tough. I'm a Daughter of Athena, I don't run from fights."

Reyna gives her a half smile, "A true war-demigoddess. That's respectable, even commendable. How do you think our two boys are doing?"

"Knowing them, probably in a fight or something."

* * *

Jason takes a punch straight to the face, his glasses crack and his nose leaks blood, but he _finally_ got the fucker right where he wanted them!

He grapples his opponent and throw him over his shoulder. The large man crashes into the dirt and is stunned from the maneuver. Jason takes advantage of the weakness and lays a series of heavy blows into the man's face.

After a few viscous seconds, the man collapses unconscious.

"AND IT'S OVER! THE SON OF JUPITER HAS WON!"

Jason holds his hands in the air, raised in victory as the Gargarean clan in the desert surrounds him and cheers for his victory. General Mills smiles and claps politely.

"Well, you beat my best fighter, so I'll honor your request. You can count on my support. Tell me where to go and I'll head there right away."

The Son of Jupiter wipes the blood from his nose. Mills offered his support to the alliance's cause, but only if Jason agreed to fight bareknuckle and win for the amusement of the clan.

Samson, the lucky bastard, just got to watch. He had already shown his 'fighting spirit' apparently, whereas Jason has not. It looks like beating a Titan in combat means anything to them if they never actually saw it.

"Samson, show him where. My face hurts and I'm pretty tired, gods why the nose? Oh yeah, we're looking for a giant archer or something too."

"Borges, the old watchmen up north in the canyons. I'll chat with him before I move my troops, see if I can get his help. I'm glad to finally bring the fight to that Witch! She pulled a curtain over our eyes with that coup, but no slight against the Gargaeans goes unpunished! I can commit a hundred and twenty men but no more, I still need some to guard our base."

Jason nods, "That's more than reasonable. Any help will do, just prepare for a decent amount of time in a tundra."

"Ugh, don't remind me. The cold sucks! We'll see you out there in under a week, give me the coordinates and I'll get my troops ready."

Samson hands Mills a copy of his map and gives the General a few more last words of advice before heading back to Jason.

He leans against a crate and watches Jason as he does his best to clean the blood from his face.

"Good fight, man, you showed that guy who's who!"

"Yeah," He tsks at his broken glasses, "He was a tough sonofabitch. Hey, think you can do something about these?"

Samson takes the glasses and taps his finger against the frame. Slowly the metal bends back into shape and the cracks in the lens mend back to a completely smooth surface again, leaving the glasses good as new.

"Oculus Repairo?"

"What?"

"Sorry, just reminds me of a book I read."

They're back to being quiet again. For the most part of their short journey around the country, nothing more than small talk passed between the two.

Not that Samson hasn't tried, Jason is just not one for much personal conversation or emotion. Samson figures his time in the Legion is responsible, individuality and dissidence is not something desired from their soldiers, after all.

"Hey… got a minute?"

Jason looks at Samson, "Sure, a minutes' rest would be nice."

Samson grimaces, "It's about the girl back at camp, the Pied Piper one."

Jason stills.

"You don't have to tell me anything, but are you doing okay? I've noticed some… _small_ things, but even those can add up."

"She's- _was_ my girlfriend. It was a mutual thing… we both thought it would be for the best."

"By that, you mean she did."

Jason looks away. Samson still gets his answer regardless.

"If you want to talk about it some more, I'll be here. Some advice I've gotten from a lot of people in my life is always keeps your mind clear during a quest. Your life is on the line, just… keep that in mind, okay?"

"Don't worry, I know when to and when not to get emotional. I appreciate it, though, so thank you. Let's just head out now, we should meet up with everyone at the camp soon."

Samson nods, throwing his keys in the air and catching them, "Then let's head to it. I had some new upgrades put in while we were here, I think you'll like some of them."

The Son of Athena takes Jason to the garage depot on the Gargarean base, just in time as the mechanic meets him and tells him the orders are complete.

He hands Samson the fob and leaves. Samson messes around with a few of the buttons and paints at his van and presses a blue button.

The tires and suspension system suddenly lift, turning from a road only car to one that looks like it could handle some of the roughest terrains with not issues at all. Samson takes his dagger and stabs at the larger tires. Jason finds himself surprised when it bounces off like the rubber was made of steel.

"Like it? I had the mechanic upgrade it, we'll need tires and a suspension system like this for getting through the Alaska wilderness. He switched out the body with a strong, yet lightweight material. It should handle most things without being damaged severely now. You're right, we should head out soon. Annabeth called me while you were fighting, the Legion's on the move and they'll be at our camp by the end of the week."

"Then let's get there first. It's probably better if the one who orchestrated this whole things gets there before his allies do."

Samson does a mock salute, "Sir yes sir!"

Jason rolls his eyes and climbs up in the passengers' seat. Samson hops in and turns the van on.

"Hey… feel like a sing along?"

Jason does not. That didn't stop Samson from singing country and folk songs for nearly three days straight as he drove them to Alaska.

Jason almost cried. Almost.

* * *

Thalia watches the imposing walls of the Bastion from behind a large snow drift. Atop the walls she can see nearly a hundred monsters and rogue demigods running atop, setting up barricades to use as cover and preparing archers for the coming invasion.

No matter what they tried, Thalia knew the alliance would never have the element of surprise. Who in their right minds would _not_ notice hundreds of enemies setting up a camp basically right in front of their doorstep?

Two of her hunters seemingly appear from the snow by her sides.

"You're back, what did you find?"

Phoebe shakes her head, "There's no other way in for an army. The valley leads to a keep behind the walls, but everywhere else is a steep drop. Even a small team wouldn't be able to handle what's inside. Monsters, by the thousands. All standard things, but we'd need everyone fighting together to handle them."

Thalia looks at the valley leading into the hundred foot walls. From cliff to cliff they have about a football field's width to fight in. It'll be large enough for then to have nearly everyone fighting while limiting the number their enemies will be able to attack them with.

In that instance, they have an advantage.

"Let's head back to base. We've done all the scouting we can. Everything else now depends on how we plan things out."

The hunters nod and turn around, racing through the snow back to the building base not far from them. Thalia gives one last glance at the walls before turning and catching up with her friends.

Back at the base Thalia mentioned, hundreds of tents are being built up as hundreds more demigods run around and construct makeshift fortifications of their own. The Legion's ability of wartime construction is truly impressive, Samson watches them work in nearly perfect tandem with an awed sense of wonder.

Samson looks around as the last dregs of the alliances' army gather and construct their base. Gargaeans, Romans, Nymphs and Hunters work together to prepare themselves for a fight that'll help ensure the safety of demigods across the country.

Here in Alaska, the region is outside of the bounds of the Greek and Roman gods. What that means Samson isn't sure, but he believes in some way Zeus is watching this coming fight with a keen eye.

The victory here will decide whether or not Samson can prove the innocence of his wife and save her life.

General Mills' forces were the last to arrive, but Samson noted a lack of heavy and modern equipment with him. At the most they have a column of transport trucks and a hand full of any ballistic weapons.

He approaches Mills as the General exits his vehicle and directs him to a tent Thalia had set up as a command center.

Inside Thalia, Reyna and Annabeth huddle over the combat map, each wearing a thick fur coat and heavy winter gear.

"Good, you're here. Now we can tally our numbers and figure out a proper plan."

"The Legion stands two hundred and fifty strong, a significant portion being newer or inexperienced recruits."

Reyna starts, Thalia goes after, "I have twelve hunters and roughly sixty Nymphs and Satyrs that volunteered to help provide support with their magic. We can't count on most to act as front-line troopers."

"I've got a hundred men under my command," Mills continues, "Hardened troops to the last one. Biggest problem is we lack heavy gear. The coup cut our numbers to a third, and much of our gear was destroyed or sabotaged by the enemy before they retreated. We've gotta go into this old school."

"If a few magic users provide Bianca with support, I believe she can summon an additional hundred undead and sustain that amount for the duration of the fight. That gives us roughly five hundred troops. Mills, did Borges come along?"

"He did, Borges is readying a supply of heavy arrows to take out any harpies or dragons should they have any."

"Good, his help will be invaluable. Annabeth, were you able to get the Strawberry to come?"

Her eyes shine with excitement, "That I did. It took plenty of Demeter campers, but they managed to take control and will it to follow us underground. Currently he's buried deep to stay warm. If we call it, at most it'll stick around for thirty minutes before burying itself again."

"So we have to be smart about when to use it. Noted, then that's our army. Next step, is what's the plan? Annabeth, I believe you worked it out with Reyna?"

"That I did. Thalia scouted the combat area out. We have six hundred feet in the valley leading to the wall, the ground is flat and there's nothing large in the way. This is a double edge for us. Once the walls come down we'll have flat terrain to fight on, making our standard combat tactics work without any obstacles. But until then…"

"We'll be at the mercy of the walls defenders," Reyna continues, "Our only cover comes from shields, shields we have a lack of for anyone not Roman. For the best safety, the Legion must be the first to destroy the wall. Once that happens, the rest of the alliance forces can rush in and secure our flanks as the enemy is sure to charge immediately after the wall is destroyed."

"How are we going to take the wall down?" Thalia asks, "I've scouted it out. The wall is tall and thick, anything short of explosives won't do jack!"

"We've got that covered. The Legion has a stockpile of high yield explosives left over from the Civil War a century and a half ago. It's old, but all of it combined will be enough to level the whole thing."

Thalia nods with an amused grin, "Romans don't mess around, do they? Well, we've got the plan ready, and we've got the numbers and skill to win. Once those walls come down we need to be ready. Waiting inside is thousands of monsters. Nothing big except for a Drakon, but they're ready for us. I have no idea how many monsters are inside the keep, but the bulk is sure to be waiting for us between the wall and the keep."

"Okay, then we have all that we can. Reyna, I'll fight with you at the wall, my crew of Naiads can handle themselves fine. Annabeth, Thalia, Mills, you'll lead the rest of the alliance into the fight after the walls come down. Thalia and Mills, each of you flank around the other sides of Reyna, Annabeth come around Thalia's side in the front, cover the nature spirits since they're the weakest fighters and will provide support instead of frontline combat."

Everyone nods at Samson's suggestions. They make sense, and each leader will be able to cover the weaknesses of the other once the fighting begins.

In three days' time, the alliance will launch their assault.

* * *

The wind blows harsh across the hundreds of faces. In perfect formation, Roman soldiers with make-shifted winter gear steel their discomfort and ready themselves for a truly great fight. The last time they were forced to assault a fortress, Kronos's bastion stood looming over their heads.

While not as tall, the hard-grey walls of the Witch's bastion stand as their last great fight hopefully for the remainder of their lives.

Reyna stands radiant ahead of her troops, Frank by her side with Peter and Blake beside him as well. Jason stands near, yet closer to Samson and Ornea. Being by the Legion again, it makes him feel awkward as most undoubtedly have some kind of content for him because he refuses to become their Pontifex.

In carts hidden within the Legion's ranks is dozens of barrels containing old and outdated explosives. Despite the age, high-yield dynamite is still explosive. Placed strategically, they'll be able to tear the walls down no problem.

Peter Sane visibly shakes in excitement, much to Reyna's ire.

"Reyna. Hey, Reyna?"

She ignores him in favor of looking fashionably resplendent.

"Reyna, it's Helms Deep. HEY GUYS! WE'RE DOING HELMS DEEP!"

The lines of Romans start murmuring, much of it in nerdy excitement. Suddenly, the ranks burst with energy.

"IT'S MOTHA-FUCKIN HELMS DEEP!"

"DEATH TO THE ENEMY!"

"FOR LORD REYNA! FOR THE DARK MISTRESS!"

Reyna pinches the bridge of her nose and sighs. Why gods? Why does her Legion _have_ to consist of nothing but a bunch of nerdy a-holes who play card games and obsess over fantasy novels?

Frank fidgets nervously. He _really_ wants to join in. Lord of the Rings is his favorite book series, and pulling a reverse Helms Deep is probably the most entertaining fight he's been in. Even more than the time he fought with everyone in their pajamas.

Blake Jefferson's face portrays no emotion. Obviously he's used to the antics of his soldiers, so he must be numb to it at this point.

Samson and his group start laughing, half cheering between laughs at the pure ridiculousness of what's happening.

"Oh boy, right louts, aren't they?" Ornea chides Jason, poking his side with her elbow. Jason just sighs and hides his smile beneath his hand.

"They're energetic today. I blame that on my friend Peter, he has a way of riling the whole Legion up and somehow getting away with it."

"That's good," Says Samson, "Morale like that will make or break this battle. Once we enter the valley, we'll be pegged with arrows the entire way until we can deliver the payload. REYNA! YOU HAVE COMMAND!"

Reyna nods at Samson and turns around to face the Legion. They all quiet down as they wait for her coming speech.

"LEGIONARES! Today we fight once again, for our allies, for our loved ones, for ourselves! The enemy festers here in the dark, growing while they wait to strike… But we shall not allow them so! Wherever the abyss grows, we shall be there, united as one to weed out their evil and destroy it completely!"

"SOLDIERS!" Reyna is cut off as Peter bumps her away with his should and shoves his icy sword high in the air, "The horns of the Legion shall sound in the deep one last time!"

The crowd goes _nuts._

"Okay, _fuck off_ Dildo Baggins!"

Reyna roughly shoves Peter in the snow and places her boot on his back, giving herself a small boost to stand on just a _bit_ higher than the rest of the legion.

"Arise, arise, Legion of Jupiter! Fell deeds awake: fire and slaughter! Spears shall be shaken, shield shall be splintered! A sword-day, a red day, ere the sun rises! Fight now, Fight now! Ride to Gondor! _Fuck_ I mean fight to the walls!"

A single manly tear falls from Peter's eye.

"Fight now, Fight now, Fight! Fight for ruin and the world's ending! Death! Death! Death!"

Like the fury of the pits of Tartarus unleashes, the Legion surges forward. A tide of fury, hidden behind the hard shields of Rome, endures the storm of arrows that fall on top of them from the sky.

Beneath a barrier spell, Samson leads his crew of Naiads and the first part of the payload across the snowy fields leading to the high walls. Hundreds of feet the cross, the hole way arrows plink off the heavy shields, the poorly trained archers high above fail to take out a single Legionnaire as squads break from the ranks and carry their payloads to the planned locations.

The training of the Legion is strong and extensive. Within only ten minutes of the assault they have their explosives ready.

"Backup! Get away from the walls!"

In a great big bundle of death and angry, cold Romans, the Legion absorbs their explosive crews back into their ranks and quickly backs away. Samson and his force follow along the side, rolling a wire along with them that is attached to an old fashion dynamite trigger.

The Legion stands several hundred feet away from the wall, shields raised and braced in case any debris manages to reach them.

Samson is not so lucky.

The line for the dynamite only reach one hundred feet, leaving them well within the danger zone for debris.

Samson focuses deep on his magical core, summoning as much magic as he can and pouring all of it into his barrier spell. If the spell can hold up to the thousands of pounds of debris, Samson is not sure.

But his friends believe in him, the believe and are counting on him, and he won't fail. Not like how he failed his brothers.

The spell will hold!

"Ornea! I've made the spell as strong as it can get! Blast that wall as soon as you can!"

She grins wickedly, her single blue eye shining with a maniacal glee Thomas would be proud of.

"Hold onto your butts, girls! Things are going to get messy!"

She grabs the handle and pushes it in. For an eternity of a few seconds, nothing happens. Seconds becomes minutes, and Ornea finds herself very displeased.

"Huh. That kinda blows-"

Her complaint is cutoff as the wall ahead of them **explodes** in a massive shower of dust and debris. She looks up just in time to see a massive chunk of stone wall crashing down on her from above.

* * *

Ornea's ears ring, muffled sounds of… _something_ happening around her as her vision in her last good eye tries to clear up.

She feels someone's arms on her body lift her up and force something down her throat. It takes her a second, but she recognizes the telltale miracle of nectar healing her aching body.

Slowly her vision clears, and she sees one of her fawning over her with worry all over her face.

"I-I'm fine, let me be dammit! What the Hades is happening around here?!"

The Naiad salutes, "Ma'am! The wall is destroyed, and enemy fast movers are engaging our girls. The Legion is currently on the move, but so is the enemy. It looks like both of them are going to get here at the same time!"

Ornea's eye widens, "Then get up and help your sisters out! We've got to fight for our lives from here on out!"

The Naiad and Ornea jump up and race to where the other nineteen members of Samson's attack force are engaged in combat with nearly a dozen lanky monsters.

"ORNEA! GET OVER HERE AND HELP OUT!"

She races over and stabs a hellhound in the eye, killing it in seconds. Samson launches spheres of fire like grenades at a small horde of enemies that races after them through the still settling debris.

Even though she can't see them, she can _feel_ the ground shaking from the main army of monsters that'll be on them in only a matter of moments.

The balls of light Samson threw explode like bombs, taking out much of the small attack group while the rest of the Naiads handle the small amount that dodged or survived the bombs.

"RUN BACK! WE NEED TO PUT DISTANCE BEFORE THE REST OF THE ENEMY GETS HERE!"

The Naiads and Samson turn tail and run back, Samson covering their retreat with his magic while the Legion races forward. The rest of the Alliance is still far away, significantly more so than the Legion.

"REYNA! GET READY, THEY'RE COMING!"

The Legion runs ahead of the Naiads and braces their shields, spears poking through and ready to gore anything that'll run into them.

Their enemies have yet to emerge from the dust cloud, but Reyna knows it's only a matter of _seconds_ before they get here.

"LEGION! Prepare yourselves!"

The ground rumbles and hundreds of screaming and screeching beasts bursts through the dust, roaring fury and charging with bloodlust at the preparing legion.

"HAZEL, NOW!"

At Reyna's orders Hazel places her hands to the ground and feels the energy of the ground beneath her feet. Her golden eyes shine and beneath the feet of the charging monster horde the ground shifts and cracks, like the very earth is being pulled apart by two different hands.

The frontline of enemy forces screams in fear as they fall into the crack, the still wriggling bodies piling up and desperately trying to claw their way out of the trap.

Hazel clenches her fists, and the crack closes on the hundreds of monsters, squeezing them into dust and puffing out a massive plume of golden monster remains.

Reyna points her spear at the distracted enemy lines, "LEGION! Charge!"

With thunderous fury the Legion charges forward, spears goring the guts of the monster forces and throwing their organs and blood onto the snow, staining it various shades of putrid red.

The enemy finally regains their bearings and counters the Romans, using their significant strength to push against the Legion shield wall and hack and slash at them with claws and axes.

Slowly the Legion is being pushed back, even with Hazel's geomancy, Samson's pyromancy and Jason and Thalia's lightning the _sheer_ size of the enemy numbers outweighs the training and discipline of Roman demigods.

Something deep and monstrous bellows out through the valley, like some kind of mix between a dinosaur and a bird, half-screeching half deep, abyssal roar. Through the settling dust yellow eyes shine through, slowly the form of a Drakon nearly a hundred and twenty feet long pulls their scaly, serpentine body over the destroyed wall, crushing whatever monsters are unlucky enough to be beneath its horrendous claws.

It rears its's head back and bellows out a screech, calling dozens of ten to fifteen-foot-long dragons down from the cliff sides. Their wings unfold and the various colored dragon hiss and snarl, preparing to unleash a flyby of fire onto the Legion.

Reyna curses and orders the back row of Legionnaires to raise their shields. She doubts they'll be able to handle the fire, dragon breath has been known to destroy simpler Legion equipment with only a few seconds of blast.

The lead dragon looms over and prepares to unleash its breath, when suddenly an arrow nearly as long as it collides with its chest with so much force it completely reverses the dragon and launches it back where it impales the corpse on the keep walls.

More tree-sized arrows are launched, followed by hundreds of silver arrow like machine guns that shreds the soft skin on the remaining dragon's wings and drops them into a complete fall from the sky.

Samson looks behind himself and smiles as he sees the rest of the Alliances forces charging for them. Hundreds of humans, Nymphs, demigods and undead roar with animalistic fury, Borges and the Hunters raining arrows of death over the heads of their allies and straight down onto the enemy forces.

Monsters by the dozens are killed, arrow pierce arteries, eyes, or simply stab them enough times the creature simply bleeds to death from dozens of wounds.

The ground ahead of the Legion rumbles and bubbles upwards, revealing the massive height of the super-sized Karpos. King Strawberry bears its sharp teeth at the equally massive Drakon and roars, challenging the beast to fight it.

"OH MY GOD," Peter exclaims loudly over the fighting around him, "REYNA! IT'S A KAIJU FIGHT! GODDAM PACIFIC RIM!"

Reyna ignores his cries of happiness and continues fighting, calling out orders and commands to her Legion while Annabeth and Thalia bolster her flanks, calling out orders of their own.

With the full strength of the alliance gathered, the enemy army finds themselves being fought to a standstill.

Despite the impressive number of powerful monsters on the field, the tight quarters of the valley walls and the shoulder to shoulder fighting of their allied beasts prevents them from fighting efficiently without harming their own numbers.

This doesn't stop all monsters from fighting with friendly casualties, however. Cyclopes wave their huge clubs in big arcs around themselves, smashing lines of Legion and undead, but also catching their own allies as well.

Reyna watches a particularly large Cyclops do good work against the second cohorts infantry line and curses. She spins her spear around and gives it a toss like a professional athlete, scoring a hit directly into the trachea of the beast.

The Cyclops half roars and gurgles, clutching the spear and yanking it free. Unfortunately for him he tears it out at an angle, effectively slitting his throat from the inside.

It wobbles a few times before falling back flat and squishing a couple rogue demigods.

Reyna unsheathes hers backup sword and continues fighting, slashing her way through dozens of assorted monsters until she catches up with Samson who is enjoying himself throwing a stream of fire from his hands and burning a mutt of a werewolf to death.

"Samson! We need to push the enemies back," She stabs an older boy in his throat, "If they push us out in the open they'll outmaneuver us!"

"There's only so much-" He kicks a dracaenae in the gut and swings his axe into the crook of her neck, "-I can do! You're the one in command! Tell us what to do!"

Reyna fights her way back to the rows of Legion troops and pushes her way through the shields, trying to locate the Centurion in control.

"Hazel! Hazel, pass my orders along. Tell everyone to form ranks! We need to be fighting in sync with the allies if we're going to push them back!"

Reyna's correct in her assessment. As the allied forces arrived, the fighting progressed into something of a free for all. There's no order to the demigod ranks, it essentially wobbles like a W, nearly completely disorganized fighting.

The Praetor's plan is to align the alliance forces into organized ranks, Legion shield on the front with the longer spears of the Gargareans behind all the while Nymphs and Satyrs use their spells to entangle the enemies and the undead can climb over everyone and jump on top of the monsters and stab them while they're distracted.

Hazels passes her orders along to the other Centurions via use of couriers. Said couriers realy the message to Annabeth and Thalia, each of them issuing commands and slowly aligning the fight into a straight wall of combat from valley wall to wall.

With the fighting aligned perfectly and troops used in balanced positions, the demigod army ends the standstill and pushes the monster army back, each death allowing them to advance slowly towards the keep walls.

By the hundreds monsters are slain, a significant difference from the demigod alliance who've lost only a few dozen troops thanks to the effectiveness of the Legion shield wall.

Ahead of the fighting, and in the center of the monster horde, the Karpos and the Drakon fight from wall to wall, each giant throwing their impressive strength around and further crushing the monsters beneath their feet with little worry. Their fight slowly moved them behind the wall where they fought in the enemy army instead of the alliances'.

Suddenly the monster lines pulls back, the entire horde retreating further from the Legion and through the crumpled outer wall. This effectively bottle necks the allied lines as well as forces them to have to try and work their way around the fighting giants.

Reyna curses loudly. The enemy had to get smart eventually now that their numbers have almost been halved. The next question is how in the world are they supposed to get past the two giants without suffering casualties?

They could try and kill both but having a massive creature on their side over none is better than fighting the enemy head on.

Dammit, how are they going to pull this off?

She sees activity in the enemy lines and watches as they cart a massive steel box ahead of their army and kick it off. The lid is pounded on roughly until the weak bolts shoot off with the plate facing them.

At first she sees nothing, but slowly a bloodied hand reaches out from the darkness and pulls its body into the snowy battlefield.

The army of monsters murmurs, some in displeasure and others in fear, leaving Reyna confused as to why.

To her, all she sees is a brown-haired boy with torn clothes and two daggers in her hands. Why would they let what is clearly a prisoner loose on the battlefield?

Unless… it's something they can't control, a loose end that'll take on whatever it's facing like a rabid dog. She almost feels pity for the poor boy but readies her Legion regardless.

If it's just one thing they've unleashed, then surely they must be confident in his strength.

Samson halts and feels his heart drop once more into the pit. Even though it's better to fight this boy here with allies instead of him by Mori's side, he's sure that several of his newfound friends are going to perish taking down the madman.

The former prisoner rolls his shoulders and stretches out his sore muscles. Today on this field of war and blood, the insane shall fight again.

Samson's last and strongest brother, the madman Thomas has finally arrived.


	61. Chapter 61

**A/N: Here it is folks, the last chapter Henosis. You've stuck it through over 300k words, 60 chapters, and half a year's worth of fanfiction. And for that, I appreciate it, I really do. I've said it last chapter but I just want everyone to know this story** _ **will**_ **have a sequel. It's actually going to be a sequel for another story as well; TheTruehero's Strife of Rome has been pretty well connected to my story, and in the sequel it'll be a crossover between our stories. Cowboys and Hippies, yup, that's happening next story.**

 **We've been thinking of names for the next story and the one we've decided on will be 'Sons of War'. Hope the name is fitting and cool, and we'll see you again soon! Thank you all for all of the support!**

* * *

 _Spring 2011_

Bianca summons her last wave of undead and collapses to the ground, a concerned Daisy hovering over her while her sister yells at her to stop worrying.

If there's one glaring drawback to Bianca's resurrection, it's that she's quite literal _years_ behind her peers in nearly all aspects of being a demigod.

Powers? She's a child of Hades and she can barely manage summoning without releasing an evil spirit on accident.

Skills? Well… she can't count on a blessing to literally give it to her, so she's barely able to use her bow effectively. Anything melee and she's dead, no arguments. Her skill with the dagger Samson gave her is next to none, not to say he hasn't been trying.

Once this marital spat with his wife is over Samson's promised he'll spend as much time as he can to train Bianca. From what she's heard about the man named Joseph that trained him… she's pretty gosh darn terrified!

Daisy leaves Bianca to rest at the Daughter of Hades insistence and returns to the fight, running to the front to help everyone figure out how to get passed the big monsters fighting in front of everyone.

Bianca sits down on a small rock and does a few breathing exercises Annabeth taught her to increase oxygen flow and help her regain stamina quicker.

As she's resting on her rock she suddenly feels a tingling in the air, like when an arm falls asleep, yet somehow… that's what the air feels like.

She looks around the battlefield and her heart stills as she meets the electric blue eyes of an old friend.

Thalia Grace glares at Bianca, pure fury racing through her mind as she comes across… _something_ wearing the face of a girl she knows had died years ago.

Bianca freezes in fear, her heart pounding against her chest. This… this shouldn't be happening! Not yet! The past few days Bianca has been avoiding Thalia like the plague, so well so that the Daughter of Zeus didn't even know Bianca was around. She assumes that Thalia assumed Nico was here and was the one summoning undead.

Normally a person would be elated to have a reunion with a friend who thought they were dead… But Bianca isn't that strong. Confrontation has always been something of a phobia of hers, she's so afraid of disappointing others that she'll leave and hide as to not deal with the harsh emotions.

Don't get her wrong, eventually she was going to reintroduce herself to Thalia… but she needs time. Time to find Nico, her baby brother again and beg for forgiveness, time to somehow find the courage to _apologize_ for being the bad sister she thinks she is.

Each step Thalia takes is furious like thunder as she marches to the frozen _thing_ pretending to be Bianca. She grabs an arm and forces the doppelganger to stand uncomfortably on her toes.

The girl gasps in pain but Thalia ignores it, glaring holes into the thing while small sparks of electricity sizzle off her body.

"WHO ARE YOU?!" Her voice echoes like one of Zeus's thunderbolts. The girl doesn't answer so Thalia slaps her roughly across the face.

"ANSWER ME!"

Bianca struggles to free herself from Thalia's iron grip, "Gah! Thalia please! Let me go!"

Thalia's grip only tightens in response.

"Thalia, stop! You're hurting me!"

Said girls' eyes only narrows into dangerous slits, "WHAT ARE YOU?! WHO ARE YOU?! HOW DARE YOU PRETEND TO BE HER!"

Small speckles of tears touch the corners of Thalia's eyes. How _dare_ this thing pretend to be her?! It will _pay_ for daring to act like the real thing!

"I am real!" Bianca screams, "I died saving everyone from Talos! But I was brought back! Percy had a statue of Hades!"

Thalia can almost feel her heart plummet straight into the ground. She slowly reaches a tantalizing hand out to touch Bianca's cheek, to see if _somehow_ this is the real little sister she lost all those years ago.

"B-Bianca…?" Her voice is hoarse in deep disbelief and saturated with years of sadness, "Is…is that you…?"

Bianca uppercuts Thalia's nose, breaking it and releasing herself from Thalia's grip. She drops to the snow and quickly skimmers away, pushing through the crowds of soldiers while Thalia grips her bloody nose.

Thalia looks out into the crowd with desperation, trying in vain to find her lost friend one more time.

"Bianca? BIANCA!? I-I'M SORRY!" Her voice drops to the lowest low she's ever felt, "I'm… I'm sorry…"

* * *

Samson watches nervously as Thomas makes his way towards the frontlines. He's very casual about avoiding being smushed by the two rampaging monsters ahead, but in a very _Thomas_ fashion he avoids the stomping feet with grace and casualness.

 _Only my brother,_ Samson thinks to himself. He readies his axe as Thomas passes the threshold into safe grounds and stands twenty feet ahead of Samson. The Legion at his sides readies their weapons but Samson holds a hand out.

"Wait! I'll handle this."

Samson approaches the smiling Thomas, his heart beating rapidly and his mind racing with a thousand desperate thoughts.

He glances at the wounds and scars on Thomas's arms. Two thick, red spots on his wrists stand out like a candle in the dark. The skin is rough and torn, and Samson knows exactly what causes rashes like that.

"Gods above Thomas… how long were you chained?"

Thomas just shrugs and looks sadly at his brother, _"Moons never end… No rest for the weary nor the wicked slaves. A thousand tears, all dropped of blood."_

Samson feels like retching. The rest of the Legion just glances at one another in confusion. What… what the hell? Does this weird kid talk in allegories or something?

"Thomas…" Samson starts slowly, "Are you yourself?"

His brother looks faux offended, _"Am I what the stars say so? What foolish child. No darkness can touch me, only the abyss within the mind of mine self. No raging vagabonds, only manic painters."_

Samson releases a long sigh before attaching his axe to the strap on his back and opening his arms wide open, eyes wet with tears ready to fall.

"Then welcome home… brother."

Thomas is by Samson in seconds, each brother hugging one another with bone cracking strength. Reyna watches the two siblings embrace and sighs quietly to herself, secretly happy that the crazy boy isn't an enemy. She would've felt _slightly_ bad if she was forced to put a rabid man down because the enemy was desperate.

"As pleasant as this reunion is. I think it's best not to forget we're on a battlefield currently, and we've got two very big problems to deal with right now."

Samson and Thomas part, both boys wiping their teary eyes and turning to face Reyna.

" _The queen calls us… a parlay to solve it all."_

"You're right, I'm sorry Reyna I just… got lost in memories is all. Let's get back to it!"

Reyna nods and turns to look over the gathered army. She sees the large Cyclops with the bow and points to him.

"You! Come forward."

Borges grunts with amusement and slowly makes his way through the ranks, all of the soldiers ahead parting for the twenty-foot monster.

He stops by Reyna, squatting down to be closer to her eye level. Still, even at half height Borges towers over Reyna. Said Praetor being completely unfazed and unafraid as she glares at the Cyclops with her hands on her hips.

"Good. I've heard you're good with that bow. Can you get _that,"_ She cranks her hand back and points her thumb at the Drakon, "-without hitting the big baby?"

Borges strokes his beard and looks at the odd sight before him. The _biggest fucking_ _Karpos_ he's ever seen is biting the neck of a sizable Drakon while it's also biting the fat baby's shoulder.

Not the oddest sight he's come across, that honor goes to the time he found Eris's sex dungeon, but it's certainly an entertaining sight.

"I can do it. Just give me a second, don't want the cabbage patch kid coming after us."

He readies his bow and nocks a tree-sized arrow, pointing his weapon at the Drakon's head and waiting for it to be in just the right position.

The valley is silent, both armies not making a single sound as the seconds pass by like ages. With a loud crack, Borges's bow launches the arrow. It flies straight and strikes true, piercing the eye of the Drakon _just_ as it rears its head up to bellow a roar.

With one last pathetic groan, the Drakon slowly turns to golden dust and melts away, leaving the beast's opponent alone to revel in its' 'victory'.

King Strawberry roars into the valley, the primal fury extending for miles and likely scaring the Hades out of any mortal that happens to be nearby.

The Karpos soon collapses to its hands and knees, its' breathing labored and coming out with heavy gasps. Samson feels a small twang in his heart for the poor beast as it finally collapses to the cold ground unmoving.

He fears the monster is dead, but slowly it absorbs itself into the ground and vanishes beneath the disturbed snow.

"Looks like it's gone," Reyna states, "Probably going back to your camp or something."

"I hope so… as weird as this sounds I kinda miss that thing. Even if the last time we saw one another it tried to kill me and everyone else!"

Reyna gives Samson a weird look but shrugs and points her spear dramatically at the enemy army.

"SOLDIERS! MARCH! March to victory! March to war!"

The lines of troops cheer and marches forward, each step booming with surety and inspiring fear in the cowering army of a thousand monsters ahead of them.

Before the armies can clash, an immense pressure suddenly covers the valley. Reyna and Samson look up at the primary tower of the keep and witness something like green electricity shooting out from it. A figure appears over the edge, and they leap over and float down to the battlefield below.

Mori stands before everyone, her body covered in a blue aura that leaks off her like smoke. Power radiates off of her as she glares furiously at the army attacking her new home.

Samson stills and calls for everyone to stand back, even Thomas, the boy who bravely challenged Kampe, holds back cautiously.

In the blink of an eye Mori is in front of the Legion. Her fist glows and she punches the shield of a Legionnaire, causing the poor boy to literally _explode_ in a shower of blood and gore.

Reyna slams her spear into the side of the witches head, her eyes widening as the aura covering her blocks the spear like her skin was made of steel.

Mori swings her arm and throws Reyna away. Samson launches a ball of fire at his wife with trepidation but she takes the flame with no visible damage at all and counter with an astral spear launched at Samson's chest.

The magic spear breaks as it hits Juggernaut, the mystical jacket blocks the blow completely but the _sheer_ strength and speed of the weapon throws Samson away where he collides with Reyna as she tries to stand.

With a roar the Legionnaire troops swarm Mori, hacking and slashing at her with spears and swords. Each and every strike is deflected off her barrier spell without so much as causing it to flicker.

She responds by unleashing a wave of blue fire at the shield users, burning them red hot and causing them to singe the flesh of their users to something beyond the third degree.

Borges responds to the furious assault by punting Mori away with his bow, using it like a golf club to launch her away and back to her army.

The witch lands on her feet in the snow and growls at the Cyclops. She throws her hand out and a beam of energy in the shape of a massive spear launches from it, colliding with Borges shoulder and piercing straight through.

Borges cries out and collapses to the ground, clutching his bleeding wound.

Standing ahead of her army Mori rears back, and the sound that echoes from her cry of war is the most awful thing any person has ever heard.

Nails on a chalk board. A bob cat's scream. The grinding of a blender. All of the sounds a person hates the most are somehow combined into a feral shout so ancient and guttural pure fear replaces the once steeled pride of the alliances soldiers.

Samson has no doubt about what this must be. Pan's scream, or at least something similar.

He's lucky Juggernaut makes him immune to charm magic, but it still won't mean much if he's forced to try and fight his way through Mori and her army.

Speaking of, the effects of her scream seem to be the complete opposite for her army. The horde of monsters rally behind her cry, each beast gaining confidence and roaring with their mistress.

After a few seconds her shout stops, but the damage has been dealt. Mori pants a few times and vanishes in a burst of blue flame. Samson guesses she's retreated back to her keep, but he has something much worse to be concerned with.

The army of the alliance, they're completely disorganized now, and the monsters know it.

Their enemy takes advantage of the recovering demigods and charges with fury. Axes, claws and fangs ready to rip through a weakened foe.

Samson curses and calls out to his friends, "EVERYONE GET UP! GET UP YOU FOOLS OR WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!"

A centaur charges Samson with a spear, but he dodges the stab and swings his axes through the front legs. The axe slices straight through the bones, causing the centaur to tumble to the ground and cry in pain as its' poison blood squirt everywhere.

Samson chops the head off with a clean sweep and readies himself as more faster enemies race after him. He splits the skull of a small hellhound and follows up with a side swipe into the chest of a gangly harpy, killing both beasts quickly as a few of the quicker to recover allies of his stand and defend their recovering comrades.

Slowly the defending troops die, are replaced by another until they die as well for a while until the main force of the alliance stands again and readies just _barely_ in time as a wave of monster's slams into the destroyed Legion shield wall.

Blood is spilt, limbs are severed, and unfortunate men and women and torn to chunks and devoured by legions of monsters.

Samson desperately fights his way through ranks of monsters, when suddenly something collides with his shoulder and throws him to the ground.

He turns around and sees Thomas standing over him, only something is _horribly_ wrong. Thomas's eyes are wide, his pupil's are dilated, and his mouth is open to show his toothy maw.

But that's not what tells Samson something is wrong. No, it's the blue light replacing the gray color of his eyes. A tell tale sign he's been enchanted by Mori's magic.

No no no NO! Not now! Not while everything is going wrong!

Samson is back on his feet in an instant and faces off against his brother, ready for the mad boy's attack while screaming over the horde of horrible monsters cries.

"REYNA! WE NEED TO PUSH THEM BACK! WE'RE GETTING SLAUGHTERED!"

Reyna rips her spear from the neck of a giant and yells her commands to Peter as he freezes enemies solid with his enchanted sword and smashes the frozen corpses to pieces.

"PETER! RALLY YOUR TROOPS AND HIT THE FARTHEST OF THE LINE! I'LL TAKE MINE AND GO RIGHT!"

Peter looks at what should be his elite soldiers and see that they're all dead, leaving the more inexperienced recruits at the mercy of the monsters where they're slaughtered within moments.

The Gargarean clan hold off well against the monster's counter attack, but without significant support from the Legion their nearly surrounded and attacked on all sides. And without the Gargareans to cover the Nymphs and Bianca's last batch of undead dying just now, the nature spirit squad is nearly decimated.

It's only thanks to the furious might of Samson's nieces that the daughters of the Hesperides counter the slaughter by killing any monster that gets nearby with brutal efficiency.

Even so, the Nymph's know they can't hold out on their own forever. They need an ace in the hole and they need it now or else the entire alliance with be destroyed.

Thomas unleashes a torrent of furious and precise strikes from his daggers, hitting two places at once and forcing Samson to constantly defend until he can no more.

Samson curses as he's forced into a state of constant defense. Watching his back for stray monster attacks while also keeping himself safe from Thomas's assault grinds his nerves to dust and drenches the whole thing with worry on the top.

This must've been her plan all along! Lure the army close and counter with her shout and wait to brainwash Thomas until Samson was close!

Kill him and the alliance will lose a significant advantage, and by drawing the army behind the ruined walls their ability to retreat will be nearly non-existent as climbing over rubble with monsters at their back would end with them all dying.

Thomas kicks Samson back and lunges at him. Samson rolls away and swings his axe. Thomas twirls over it and charges again, stabbing furiously at his brother like a murderer. Knowing Thomas, he very likely is.

"Gah! Fuck dammit Thomas snap out of it! We're brothers! You're better than this! You're better than her!"

Thomas only raves in response.

"Fine! If this is how you want to play it, then let's do it motherfucker!"

The metal bands on Samson's sleeve transform into a round shield, catching Thomas by surprise as he's bashed in the face by it.

Thomas's nose crunches sickly and a few teeth are knocked out, but he quickly gathers himself and launches his entire body weight against the shield. Samson feels the strength of the impact and barely holds himself up.

He smacks his shield down to prevent Thomas from snaking a knife into his arm, but he hisses in pain as the other knife slashes across the bridge of his nose.

It only grazed him really, but it still cuts deep to spill a torrent of golden ichor into the snow, all the while more blood from the slaughter of the two armies dyes the snow a deep red.

Samson swings his axe a few times to discourage Thomas while he clutches the stinging wound on his face. Slowly he feels Ram in bandana form in his interior pocket mending the gash, but the healing is slow and wounds near the head bleed much more than anything lower.

Thomas gives Samson a bloody grin, his chipped teeth and blood pouring from his maw making him look more like a vampire than a demigod.

The mad demigod throws himself at Samson's shield again, Samson swings his axe predicting Thomas's pattern when suddenly Thomas grabs the edge of the axe and yanks it back.

Samson keeps his grip on the axe but he's quite literally pulled out of position. Thomas yanks him and smashes his forehead against his brothers'. Before Samson can regain his bearings, he feels something stinging his leg.

Thomas yanks his dagger free from Samson's leg and kicks his shield, throwing him to the ground. Samson desperately tries to pick himself back up, but Thomas places a foot down on Samson's shield and pins him down.

He quickly stabs a dagger into Samson's axe hand and yanks the axe away. Samson curses to himself as Thomas brings his remaining dagger high and dramatically, savoring the look on his brother's face as he prepares the kill strike.

Before he can bring the knife down, Thomas grunts and drops it into bloodied snow. He looks down at his chest and sees a small red point sticking out of the center of his chest. Suddenly it's pushed in, shoving inch by bloody red inch of a steel spear point through his chest, small strands of viscera yanking through with the edge.

The point is yanked out and for a few seconds Thomas feels the wound. His eyes return to his natural color and he looks down at Samson. He removes his dagger in Samson's injured hand and gently places the other in his grip.

And then he falls over, the bloody snow splashing his face and dyeing his cheeks red. The life quickly leaves his eyes, the hole in his heart making his death quick.

Samson watches Thomas slowly die, completely frozen as he meets those ever-dimming grey orbs.

"…ason!"

This is it. The last brother is gone. From this point on truly, Samson is alone.

"Sa…n!"

Hands are on his body, literally shaking him out of his stupor. He looks out and realizes that he's wrong. Samson isn't alone. His savior, his friend, his student, Bianca desperately shakes him, hand still clutching a bloody spear.

"Samson! Samson snap out of it! Everyone's dying!"

He looks out across the bloody field, watching in morbid awe as the slaughter of the alliance continues. Samson blinks a few times before his eyes sharpen and he allows Bianca to pull himself to his feet.

"Bianca! We need to find Reyna!"

* * *

Peter continues hacking his way through the horde of monsters, slowly fighting his way to where he guesses the center of the army to be.

What he's about to do right now, he hoped to have _never_ have to. He knows Reyna will never forgive him, and he knows he'll never be able to forgive himself either, but this **has** to happen.

By the dozens beasts fall before him, his icy sword freezing creatures in seconds where a solid punch will shatter them completely.

His golden armor slowly deteriorates with every blow it blocks, but its' resilient strength grants him the security and time he needs.

He severs the head of a dracaena and uses the still deteriorating corpse as a makeshift shield to block a series of spines from a small manticore. Peter charges the beast as it continues shooting the corpse and smashes it in the face.

While it's still dazed he brings his falcata down onto the beast's skull, splitting it in half and killing the beast instantly.

Peter feels his blood beginning to flow, his heart pumping wildly as dregs of a different part of himself desperately claws at the corners of his mind.

But he won't allow it. His _other_ self wants to take control, to fight and save itself, his most primal instincts. Peter refuses that to happen.

For his friends, for Reyna, he'll make the ultimate sacrifice.

Slowly the monsters around Peter encircle him like he's a beast, the rows randomly spewing out various monsters that quickly die while their brethren cheer them on like some kind of fucked up cock-fighting ring.

Peter closes his eyes and whispers a prayer to his father, hoping he'll still be able to help him outside of his technical range.

"Father… please give me the strength to save my friends."

An unnatural icy wind crosses his skin, a sense of understanding what must be done suddenly crosses his mind. His father answered, and Peter knows _exactly_ what he has to do now, but he's not going down quite yet.

Call him selfish, call him blood thirsty, if the monsters are going to get his death they have to **earn it.**

Peter roars and hollers at the crowding beasts, "COME ON! COME ON YOU COWARDS! FACE ME!"

The dam breaks and the horde charges, one by one, two by three, dozens more denizens of Tartarus fall before his blades, each kill further enhancing his blade with the powers of ice.

All around Peter the horde freezes, only a single cut being necessary to freeze their bodies solid, but the horde is unending.

He will not last much longer.

A surprise attack from a giant's club sends Peter flying into the crowd, his desiccated armor barely protecting him from the lashing claws of a couple Harpies.

His sword flurries out and the beasts die, but Peter struggles to bring himself to stand. He coughs out a few spats of blood and bares his bloody teeth at the approaching giant

"Dammit," he curses through labored breaths, bleed leaking down his face and through the destroyed holes in his armor.

"Can't keep this up… much longer…"

Peter looks out at the collapsing line of Romans, watching his friends and comrades get torn to shred by bloodthirsty aberrations.

He scans out one last time, hoping to see the eyes of his Warhead at least one more time. But alas… he can't find her.

Peter Sane, the Son of Aeolus draw his sword around and points it at his chest. The blade has been absorbing power from each kill, but its threshold is far above what simple monsters can provide the hungry blade.

If his plan is going to work, then it needs to be fed something of considerable strength.

It needs to taste the blood of its' master.

Peter drives the blade into his heart. Instantly he feels the creeping cold bite of the ice that slowly overtakes his body.

His body shivers and his mind screams at himself in fury, but he feels happy. Peter once told Reyna he'd happily die for her, and now he's holding that promise true.

"Sorry… Warhead… had to take one for the team. AVE ROMA!"

The world explodes in a blast of icy, white light.

* * *

Reyna covers her ears as a roaring gust of icy wind suddenly explodes out from the monster army. The wind is so loud she feels like her ears will bleed. The cold following the currents is biting to say the least, like all of the heat in her body was taken away and she was somehow alive for the whole experience.

In only a span of a few seconds the hell that was whatever the hell just happened passes by. The entire valley is silent, only the faint sound of the wind overhead of the valley being audible.

Slowly Reyna uncovers her ears and glances at her fingers. Yup, her ears bled. Thankfully she can still hear, but she's sure to have problems later in life because of this.

She looks out over the battlefield and her eyes widen in disbelief. Hundreds of ice statues stretch across the lines of where the enemies once were.

It's then that she realizes that they _are_ her enemies, or at least they once were. Now they're just a thousand corpses stuck forever in the final moments of their previous actions.

Her eyes turn to her army and she sighs as she sees that none of the alliance's forces were caught in the blast of ice and wind.

How that can be she does not know. Whatever took out the army most definitely should've hit her troops too, but it's like the event purposefully avoiding touching anything human.

All is quiet as the Legion slowly gathers their wits and starts attending to their wounded. The high towers of the keep still looms overhead, but otherwise the battlefield is dead.

Both literal and figuratively.

Dozens of Romans and Gargareans lie dead or dying in the snow, many torn to shreds while others are simply gored and obviously feasted upon.

It's a sight Reyna is all too familiar with. The Titans. The Giants. They've caused carnage like this before, and by now she's become accustomed to it.

Reyna walks across her ranks of troops, watching them as many cry over the dead and desecrated forms of their friends and family.

She feels herself sigh as familiar faces to her rest with only minor wounds. She sees Annabeth nursing a cut above her waist, Hazel wrapping a wound on Frank's arm, Thalia mourning over a fallen hunter, Bianca leaning against Samson as the two Lamia sisters chat idly with his crew of Naiads. A veteran Gargarean desperately trying to save the life of Mills, wrapping gauze over the stump of what remains of his left arm, but she's not so certain he'll make it.

All of her Centurion's survived the battle as well as much of their cohorts, even the Nymphs have a portion of their remaining numbers including the psycho's Samson is the uncle to.

Still, the death toll was large and brutal. Many of her friends have died today, she knows the names of all of he troops that died fighting under her.

The friendly Cyclops is sitting on a giant rock, Jason trying to help the creature manage the hole in its' arm.

"I said I'm fine, leave me be dammit!"

"You have a hole in your arm! You need to take care of it before you die!"

Borges just waves him off with his good hand, "Then let it happen! I've been 'round long enough, might not reform after this and I'm fine with that. All good things must end, and by now I feel like it's muh' time."

Jason looks at the Cyclops with a faint sadness, but chooses to accept the Cyclops's wishes and backs off to let him handle himself.

Reyna approaches and Jason spins around, relief visible as he runs up and hugs Reyna. She freezes for a second, barely holding back her instinct to knee him in the crotch, but relents and lets him hug her.

Jason always hugs when he's happy a friend is alive or happy, so she'll let him have this just _one_ time.

He lets her go and his eyes trace across the fields of frozen monsters.

"Reyna… only one person could do this."

She closes her eyes and sighs softly. She didn't want to admit it to herself, but she's certain who did this and how they did.

Small tears leak down her eyes as she looks away from Jason. She's a Praetor for Jupiter's sake! She won't be caught dead crying by _anyone_ for the sake of her honor and the honor of Rome!

Jason understands, so he looks away, giving Reyna the privacy she desires.

"Peter… you bloody fool… always true to your word, huh?"

Something loud suddenly cranks from the keep. Reyna's spear is pointed and ready for whatever else the witch has to throw at her, but nothing leaves the giant doorway leading inside.

Rather the opposite, actually. Small bands of surviving monsters quickly race inside as a massive door of solid steel begins sliding down.

"Reyna! They're going to lock themselves in!"

"Dammit, we don't have the equipment to handle the siege and we have wounded!"

Her mind races with thoughts and plans, a thousand different ideas racing through her mind but each and every one of them not being near good enough to be successful.

Borges decides to handle this himself. The wounded Cyclops is up on his feet, smashing through the rows of frozen monsters and squashing anything living as he races to the damaged Keep gate.

He throws a small centaur to the side and catches the steel door with one hand, groaning as he struggles to keep it open.

"HURRY UP DAMMIT! I CAN'T KEEP IT OPEN!"

Sensing the direness in his voice, Jason and Reyna sprint the distance towards the gates, Samson and surprisingly Bianca just behind them.

Borges's legs buckle and his hand bleeds. He looks at his bad arm and sighs. He brings the wound arm up over his head, roaring in pain as the intense movement shreds the already shredded wound in his shoulder.

With both hands he holds the door up, but every second that passes he feels his strength slipping. If he was healthy he might've been able to hold this for hours, but his wounds and weariness have taken its's toll.

He's got seconds now.

Reyna feels something catch her foot and she yelps out as she faceplants into a pile of thankfully clean snow.

Jason turns around but Reyna yells at him to go without her.

"GO! Forget about me!"

Jason spins around and races with the two others quick enough to recognize how important it is to win against the witch herself.

The trio races under the gate and Samson spins around and calls out to Borges.

"Borges let go! Get out of here!"

The Cyclops glances at Samson, his eye distant as though he's caught up in old memories. Slowly he turns to Samson with a sad, yet happy expression.

"End of the line for me kid… arms busted, got no use anymore. I'm okay, now go get her and make this count!"

He lets his arms go, the heavy steel door _slams_ down and crushes Borges, his body turning to dust almost instantly from the sheer speed and weight of it.

Samson gazes at the pile left on their side of the door. Another person has lost their life for his cause, and by the gods that _hurts._

Slowly he turns his head to the covering guards left inside the keep. Leading outwards is a massive hall with gigantic spiraling stairs at the end. Between the guards in regular intervals are pillars holding the weight of the keep up.

Only a few dozen assorted monsters and rogue demigods stands before the trio, each ready to die for their mistress.

Samson is more than happy to oblige them.

He throws his axe overhead and catches a nearby female demigod directly in her face. He throws his hand out and the axe flies back to it, dragging the body a small ways and splashing him with her blood. He couldn't care less, all that is on his mind is death, death to his enemies and an especial death to the Titan controlling his wife!

Jason looks disturbed as Samson rages through the small remnants of the army, but he's even more so when he sees Bianca scoring accurate headshots on monsters and rogue demigods alike.

He didn't believe it at first the tale of Nico's sister's resurrection, but seeing the similarities in how brutal she fights compared to her brother leaves no doubt in his mind.

She's a killer, just like Nico, even if the two deny it. Their differences to Hazel is glaring, just like the differences between Pluto and Hades.

Children of Hades have a darkness within them, just like the ghost stories he's heard around Camp Half Blood.

"C'mon Jason! You didn't volunteer just to stand around while everyone else does the work!"

Jason shakes himself from his thoughts and charges alongside his companions, choosing instead knockout blows to any demigod he comes across rather than outright kill them.

He's a Son of Justice, these people deserve a fair trial over immediate execution.

The fighting through the halls is slow and controlled, each demigod fighting with efficiency and doing their hardest to avoid unnecessary damage to themselves.

"Hey, Samson?" Jason questions, parrying a monster claw and stabbing it to death through their heart, "What's the plan with the witch upstairs? I saw her turn a man into bits just by touching him, how are we supposed to fight that!"

"Fairly simply, doing stunts like that and using that scream will have drained her powers considerably. She should only be about as strong as either one of us now, and with numbers on our side we'll overpower her three to one."

Jason scrutinizes the plan a bit but concedes and goes back to his business. Magic and powers are something Samson has apparent expertise in, if he believes she's weakened then he'll believe it.

"Still… something doesn't sit right with me."

"How so?"

"She should never of been this powerful in the first place. I know her limits and power like that should be beyond her. The only way she could've gotten this strong is by using an outside source."

"What, like a battery or something?"

"Exactly, something provided her power like that. The sooner we get to her the sooner we can stop her from regaining that power."

"Hold up, leave the next person alive."

Samson sees a twinkle in Jason's eye and figures he has a good plan. He disarms a demigod that tries to get a kill on him and throws the boy to the floor. He places his boot on his chest and holds his axe to the side of the boy's neck.

He motions to Jason who kneels down by the fearful boy, "Hey, name's Jason, just want to ask some questions."

The boy nods fearfully, "If it keeps me alive ask away!"

Jason nods, "Good. I want to know what's powering the witch. Is it some magic crystal? Or some ancient artifact?"

"N-no sir! It's a boy!"

Samson and Jason's eyes meet, "Go on."

"Y-yeah, she brought a beaten boy back to base one time! Said she disguised herself as his dead sister and lured him into a false sense of security. She's been draining his powers for months now, feeding on it for temporary strength or something!"

Samson presses his boot harder against his chest, "What's his name?!"

"N-N-Nico! She said his name is Nico! He's down the hall on the next floor! She's got him hooked up to some machine or something!"

Samson curses and kicks the boy unconscious.

"Dammit! Jason, Bianca, we have to-"

He looks up and sees the two already sprinting down the hall towards the stairs. Samson sighs dramatically and races after them.

* * *

Children of the King of the Undead have a unique connection and understanding to what death is. They can 'sense' when death looms over someplace or somebody.

And every hour that passes, Nico Di Angelo literally feels himself dying.

Foolish! Naive! How could he ever think that he'd see his wonderful older sister ever again?! The vision he saw when he looked into Samson's prophecy orb came true, don't get him wrong, but like Fate it came true in a horrible way.

The enemy Samson has been chasing after was disguised, wearing the skin of his dead and likely already reincarnated sister.

She pretended she was being attacked by Hellhounds when Nico was passing through some old ruins in the forest and completely fooled him. Even her aura felt like Bianca's.

Whomever this witch is she's powerful enough to fool his ability to understand souls.

The doppelganger lured him into a false sense of security and laid her trap! Magic celestial bronze shackles that deactivated his powers were places on him while they hugged, and she transformed into her true self and knocked him unconscious.

When he awoke he was here in some dungeon Gods know where, pipes and needles stabbed into his skin and shackles hold him in place in some kind of headless, spikeless iron maiden that slowly sucks his life force away.

And Nico felt it, ever piece of his life is drained from his body slowly and his converted somehow into a white potion that is shipped somewhere else and to someone else.

Nico guesses the witch is feasting on it, drinking his life to empower her own somehow.

He really hates witches. Their ability to violate nature is awful and their disregard for doing so is vile and wretched.

But Nico is still curious about something else.

The Witch that attacked him is possessed, or at the very least is brainwashed and being mind-controlled.

Another spirit has latched onto her soul, sustaining itself with her life while leaving her unimpaired. He doubts it's mutual, the lady seems conflicted at times and almost has to remind herself what she's doing, like her unconscious mind is arguing with the spirit.

As for what the spirit is he hasn't the foggiest clue. It doesn't fee like a demon, the energy is too potent even if the spirit itself is barely a mist and lacks the strength to manifest itself.

To him, it almost feels like a _very_ watered down version of what he sensed from Luke when he was possessed by Kronos all those years ago.

But can a Titan soul truly be that weak? Even weak gods are powerful, much more than demon spirits or demigods, so what is this thing?

Perhaps he'll never find out. Maybe he'll die here, alone and weary as some bewitched crazy woman sucks his soul away.

It's fitting. A child of Shadows dying alone in some cave, not a single mortal in sight to rescue him or even care he's been gone.

Nico Di Angelo will die alone, and he's accepted that. Just a little shadow vanishing into the abyss.

…Only he's not alone.

Bianca slams through the doors leading to the _torture_ room containing her brother. A few guards spin around and challenge her, but her sheer fury overwhelms their senses, the shrieks of the dead and the damned assaulting their minds while a simple arrow to the forehead sends them to her father's realm.

Bianca Di Angelo is mad. Her precious, sweet little Nicky has been on his own for so long, trapped in his own dark mind of self-pity and doubt.

She'll prove him wrong, by force if necessary.

"NICO! Nico hold on! I'll- I'll get you out of there!"

Her brother groans, and cracks open a weak eye. Even with his little strength, Nico manages to pull off a bone-chilling glare.

"Enough… stop wearing her face… you _monster._ "

Bianca shivers at his last word. She guesses they're directed to the witch, but she can't help but feel that he means that message to _Bianca._

Despite their bonds as brother and sister, the two siblings of the Undead King feel more distant than strangers.

Tears slips down Bianca's cheeks but she ignores them and starts madly fawning over some kind of control panel, searching for something obvious that screams 'release'.

Jason appears in the doorway and runs to her side, Samson showing up only a moment later.

"Wait! Both of you step away from the console! I've seen this device before, Mori and I made a blueprint for it years ago. There's a certain order to it, whatever you do just don't pull the two-handed lever!"

In Bianca's mind all she heard was 'pull the lever!', which she does to disastrous consequences.

Nico's iron maiden releases him and Jason flies up and catches him, but by doing so Bianca set in motion a relapse in the system that leads to catastrophic meltdown.

Meaning that it explodes.

Through sheer dumb luck the conical shape of the extractor makes the explosive energy release upwards like a volcano, straight into Jason and Nico as they hover in the air.

Jason barely manages to flip himself around and cover Nico's body with his own as a stream of white fire collides with his back and throws him to the far side of the room.

Bianca's eyes widen with fear, much like a deer as Samson shouts and crosses the room to the fallen demigods.

His fears of their untimely deaths are unfounded, Nico breathes if just barely, the fire never touched him, but Jason is not so lucky.

Jason's back is charred black, his flesh still sizzles and the Son of Jupiter wails in pain.

"Dammit-dammit! Jason hang in there! Bianca, get me ambrosia!"

The girl only covers her mouth, still frozen.

"BIANCA!"

Samson's voice screams with the fury of Tartarus, snapping Bianca from her stupor. She quickly fumbles around in her bag with shaky hands and runs over to Samson, handing him a big glob.

He tears it into bite size chunks, feeding them to Jason who greedily gobbles them up.

Jason sighs and relaxes, passing out from the pain as the miracle of the gods slowly heals the damage to his back. Samson hopes Jason can still walk after this, but with Will Solace's help he'll make a full recovery in only a month or so.

Oh is the wonders of magical medicine, but the problem lies in the statement. How is Samson going to _get_ him to Will?!

Samson looks at Bianca from the corner of his eye and sighs.

"Bianca…" The girl freezes, "Take Jason and Nico back to Camp. They need healers."

Bianca notices the one thing Samson failed to mention.

"…What about you?"

Samson looks across the room to the stairs leading higher into the Keep tower, likely all the way to the top.

"I'm going to finish this."

"But-" "BIANCA!"

He's quiet for a second, "Do as I say. Their lives are at stake, now go!"

She frowns at his words but obeys his command. Jason and Nico could die any minute, and she'll be damned if she allows herself to lose her brother again!

Bianca puts her hands on the injured demigods and looks up at Samson as he marches towards the stairs.

"Samson," She calls out, "…You make it home… I'm not losing _any_ of my family today!"

The shadows consume her, and she's gone. Samson is still as he looks at the stairs.

"Heh… shame I'm a liar."

To save Mori from a grim future, Samson must sacrifice himself to the Fates. For the safety of his wife and all those living he cares about, Samson is prepared to throw his own immortal life away.

Still… doesn't mean he's not going to beat the snot out of that Titan before she consumes him!

* * *

The top of the tower is silent. Samson fully enters the uppermost roof of the tallest tower and is surprised by the spaciousness of it.

The whole area is flat and about as large as a baseball field. Samson never guessed the Keep Mori built could be this big, but he's grateful his battlefield will be spacious enough for what's about to happen.

"Beautiful, isn't it? The lengths our kind will go to when given a common enemy."

His wife, his reason for everything, Mori, sounds out from the edge of the tower, the witch looking down neutrally from the stone slabs acting as guard rails.

Her voice is hollow and distant, like it's not her own, and Samson feels something like a nail driven into his heart.

She's here, right in front of him, yet… she's so far away. Somewhere deep inside her body Mori's true self lies dormant, this cursed abomination replacing her instead.

Samson approaches the edge and looks out over the former battlefield. Already the combined armies have retreated to safety, but the damage has been done.

All across the snowy field blood dyes it red.

So many will be buried with closed caskets, their bodies too mangled to reasonably show it to their concerned families.

This day, it was a _tragedy._

"I can't say it's beautiful, I appreciate sentient life too much for that. Luna, you know why I've come. Give her back and take me, it's what you wanted, isn't it?"

Mori turns to Samson, her eyes changing to a silver and her voice becoming something different entirely.

"Oh, you know who I am?"

"Of course, the spirit of Selene lives within me after all. I know you wish to consume my essence along with hers to regain your strength and manifest fully outside of a host. And I'm willing to let it happen, but first I have some questions if you're cordial enough?"

Luna tilts her head to the side, "Ask away, my little morsel, you've come this far and I consider myself a refined woman. There's always time for a discussion."

Samson nods, agreeing with her, "Good, then let's begin. First, you are Luna, the Roman Titan goddess of the Moon?"

She nods, "Correct, that I am."

"Second, the spirit of Selene, the _Greek_ Titan goddess of the moon lives within me, the goddess being my previous incarnation, correct?"

She nods once more, a satisfied smile on her face, "Correct again. You hold the spirit of Selene, and by extension makes you her current version. I mean to consume your essence and become whole again, shedding this skin so I may walk the world once more and have my vengeance against the God of Olympus who allowed me to fade away into nothingness!"

Samson nods, he figured all of this was the gods fault and it relates into something old seeking revenge. What he's still having trouble wrapping his mind around is the 'fading' part. A faded god is a dead god. A god who's been forgotten by enough and their essence is absorbed into Tartarus never to form again without special circumstances no one alive knows.

"Yes, but what I'm curiosu about is how you live at all! You're faded, yet here you are. How can that be?"

Luna tilts her head, "Oh? You lack the memories of Selene? Even with Aunt Mnemosyne restoring her memories to your body?"

Samson idly scratches the crown of his head, "We've got… differences between us. We're not whole is what I'm saying. As gross as it sounds I'm more like a living tumor attached to the real Selene rather that a true amalgamation."

"Ah, I see then… To answer your question I shall look back, back to the beginning Days of Rome. Eons ago the Romans chose to worship Apollo and Artemis as the gods of the Sun and the Moon. This caused my brother and I to begin fading. Helios, the poor bastard, did, but Selene is a crafty woman.

Sensing her demise she removed her godly power, giving it all to me as she became nothing more than a simple demititan. By consolidating our power I was allowed to survive eons longer than most, eventually devolving into nothing more than a spirit sucking on the lifeforce of random monsters i happened across in Tartarus to keep me whole. I chose to remain in Tartarus as the primordial energy was easier for me to survive in than on the surface. But by doing so I was trapped! I could never leave that place without the assistance of another!

 _Selene_ was granted a far better fate. In her halfling form she went to our aunt, Mnemosyne, and begged for a new life. She was granted this and became 'Abigail', a lieutenant of Artemis for a thousand years until her betrayal and death."

"So that's… so that's how it happened… But why now? Why are you here? Why did Mnemosyne return Selene's memories?"

Luna shrugs, unsure, "I took this body because it was convenient. For the first time in thousands of years a human was in Tartarus, a perfect vessel to return to the surface and begin my plans. I joined with her when she threw herself into the River Acheron in Tartarus, corrupting her mind as the pain made it easy to mold and making her believe what I whisper."

"But why would she go to Tartarus? Why would she throw herself in the river pain?!"

"Why for the power of course. Her greatest weakness is her desire for power, you know this. She's a powerful witch and is immortal thanks to the apple you stole from Hera, but her body is still like a mortals'. Similar to the River Styx's ability to grant the curse of Achilles, Acheron, if one survives the pain fully, will grant them a body like a god's. Supreme strength, Stamina, healing, durability, all is the gift of Acheron with the only drawback being the effects to one's sanity. As for why Mnemosyne decided to make Selene whole again I don't know. Elder Titans are mysterious, even to me. For all I know she's lonely and wants a niece she can convince to hang out with her and binge watch television shows.

Hecate has been involved as well, but I theorize she's more concerned with her daughter than she is with me. Mori is likely a daughter Hecate wishes to replace Circe and Medea as immortal sorceresses. Not that I blame her. Hecate's reputation is already bad enough, she probably doesn't want a third daughter messing it all up."

Samson thinks about it for a few seconds, "Huh, Titans are weird."

"You're telling me. Try being one, it's _super_ weird."

The two are quiet for a few seconds.

"For what it's worth… none of this is personal. You just happen to be in the way of my victory. How shall our dance play out, hmm? Shall I beat you senseless and absorb your essence? Or will you fight back?"

"Of course I'll fight back! Doesn't mean you won't consume me in the end, but I have pride. You'll have to **earn this** from me."

Luna's smile becomes feral, "Then we get to play. Tell me when and we'll begin. We have honor, and our duel shall be one of that."

Samson nods and steps away from the edge, backing up to face Luna from the opposite end of the roof. He takes note of his current arsenal and decides which weapon shall help him best.

While his axe has weight and an impressive ability to damage armor, the size and mass of it means he can't react to fast strikes very well. His shield will be his defense, the enchantment that deflects magic will be invaluable in this fight, but a more standard sword and shield combo will be what's needed here.

He tosses his axe to the ground and reaches to his back, pulling the condensed sword-form of his Dragonslayer spear.

With the ability to transform at will between a six-foot spear and a sword, the weapon will be able to cover different strengths of both weapon styles while only taking up the space of one.

The spear's lightning enchantment will be extremely valuable as well. Luna has a powerful shield spell covering her body like a second skin, but things like water or electricity can still pass through.

All he has to do is smack her with the spear and she'll become electrified, giving himself further advantage over her.

Samson thinks back to Mori's displayed spell list and notes that besides being a gifted pyromancer, Mori attacks quite often with 'astral' gear.

Meaning she'll summon magic-solidified weapons like spears and arrows and launches them like bullets.

Cheap to summon and powerful in practice, astral magic is one most people should fear, including Samson.

"I'm ready." His words are simple but sure. Samson has spent many long months without rest for this moment. He's as ready as he'll ever be.

Luna smiles and slowly begins to rise in the air, her tennis shoes sprouting small wings like Hermes's sandals.

"Like them? I found them in Tartarus years ago. They were cursed but a simple spell removed it! These here are certified Hermes brand Flying Sneakers (trademarked), best flying devices on the market and _not_ something easily acquired!"

Samson groans and readies his weapon in spear form.

"Gods above, this is going to hurt."

* * *

Luna stares down the halfling facing her. No… he's far beyond that now. His souls is like that of a minor god's, it shines with power yet something feels off about it.

He's incomplete, and that means he hasn't accepted his true nature. As it stands the boy likely believes himself to be a regular immortal.

Not that it matters. Soon she'll consume his soul and add his strength to her own, giving her the body she's been desperately missing for thousands of years. If anything, it's a mercy to consume him. The politics and social workings of the gods would destroy him from the inside out.

His spear crackles minutely as he points it at her. His stance is strong and that shield of his sings with complex magics even Hecate would be proud of.

This boy is powerful, so that means she must be careful.

To test the waters, she summons a few astral arrows in the air. Not too much, only a couple dozen… dozen.

Her arrows launch at him like a machine gun, and too her surprise they collide against a shimmering nearly invisible wall in front of the shield.

So that's it then, his shield has a secondary 'magic' shield that blocks other magic. Could she brute force her way through it?

Of course she can, she's a _Titan_ after all, but Luna prides herself on being a clever fighter as well as an honorable one. Brutes smash things to pieces, refined warriors dance around their foes and strike their weak points.

She notices the silver ring that Athena girl stole from her is around his finger. She grimaces at the ugly memory and decides that she misses her old weapon.

Luna extends her hand and Samson feels an immense pressure grabbing his finger. The pressure forces his hand open and the silver ring flies off his finger and slide smoothly on hers.

Samson curses as he's starting to understand the strength Mori/Luna possesses. If he's going to handle himself against her he's got to fight smart and conserve his power.

When it comes to raw magical power, Mori far eclipses him. But personal combat has always been his strongest ability. If he can get up close inside her guard he can work his way through her shield. It will take some hard work, but enough strikes will surely take her spell down.

Luna sees the gears turning in the boys head and she smiles. An opponent that thinks is truly a worthy one. She'll greatly enjoy this!

She summons the sword from the ring and flies at the boy, her flaming sword _smashing_ against his shield and forcing him back on his feet.

Samson's arm stings from the sheer might of the blow and he curses as her speed with those damn shoes is far greater than he thought!

He lashes his spear out and nicks her shoulder, but the grazing blow bounces harmlessly off her aura and the electricity is more like a tingle than a paralyzing shock.

Luna kicks off his shield and slowly glides down to the floor gracefully. Quickly she kicks off the ground and hovers around Samson.

Like a graceful ballerina that's actually a shark she encircles her prey, gliding across the ground and idly launching powerful magical blasts against Samson's shield.

Each blow against Samson's spell rattles his arm and strains the spell on his shield. He knows he can't hide behind it forever, the spell can break and force him to wait for it to recharge, but these precious few moments to read his opponents movements can make or break this fight.

This fight is a dance. All parts must flow perfectly or it'll all come tumbling down.

Luna kicks the ground and twirls up into the air. She twists and pulls her hands apart, creating an astral bow with a glowing magic arrow notched and ready to fire.

Samson's instincts _scream_ and he quickly jumps back as she launches the arrow. It smashes into the ground where he was and _explodes_ with a loud bang like a firework. The light from the explosion blinds Samson and he barely manages to hide himself behind the shield as Luna's fist collides with his shield.

Her strength throws Samson to his feet and launches him backwards. He uses the momentum to roll back to his feet and instinctively stabs with his spear. His battle instincts worked well for him as the point of his spear smashes straight into Luna's forehead.

The Titan yelps and quickly flies back, her aura flickering from the attack on a vital spot on her body. She clutches the fizzling aura and glares at Samson.

Her silver eyes on Mori's face makes Samson feel nauseous, but he steels himself and examines how his hit reacted to her spell.

Compared to hitting the shoulder, it seems like the more vital an attack on spots of her body the more damage is dealt to the magic armor spell.

Her force field is powerful, but smart strikes will crack it open in no time, leaving her vulnerable to Samson's ace for dealing with spirits.

"Smart boy, seems like you've figured out the weakness. Let's kick things up a notch, shall we?"

She angles her bow up in the sky and launches an arrow. Instead of flying high into the sky the arrow vanishes only twenty feet above her head into a small cloud.

Samson's eyes widen as the cloud races after him, a shower of magic arrows following the path of the cloud like rain.

Samson brings his shield up to block the shower, but doing so open his body up for a serious attack. Luna takes advantage of the opening and throws her hand out. Blue energy explodes out like a sonic boom and slams into Samson.

He feels his ribs crack and bruise from the powerful sonic attack but the damage is minimal enough that Ram already works on healing the wounds.

Luna follows her attack and glides across the ground like a wasp at Samson, lashing her sword out against Samson's guard who does a wonderful job despite his injuries of blocking and parrying her attacks.

At point blank range Luna switches back to her bow and quickly charges a magically enforced arrow. The projectile slams against the surface of the shield and explodes like a bomb, making Samson slide back across the stone roof on his feet.

Samson keeps his balance and peeks over his shield to see… nothing-FUCK!

He swings his shield around but Luna's already under his guard, slashing across his chest with the sword he made.

Thankfully Juggernaut has shown so far to be immune to breaking, but having metal slam into your chest with only fabric to protect it still can cause bruising.

And bruise it did, straight across his ribs and Sternum Samson can feel a long and thin bruise already forming.

Hits like that are absolutely awful for fighters because that means every breath will hurt, and a distraction like that in a fight can mean death.

Samson kicks Luna in her crotch and bashes her face with his shield. While she's distracted from the combo Samson gets his extra hit in and stabs her straight in the chest with his spear.

Luna places a hand against his shield and suddenly it explodes like a flash bang. His eyes sting from the light but quickly readjust. He's back on his guard but realizes whatever attack she did just broke the secondary spell on his shield.

The Titan hovers in the air, face red with discomfort as she rubs her legs against one another, gasping occasionally.

"G-gah! Really? A nut shot?! That's a low blow dude, really not cool!"

Samson shrugs, "It's a fight, you do what it takes to win. Girls use that moves against guys all the time at Camp, I wanted to see if it would work the other way!"

Luna rolls her eyes, "Well it _does_ hurt! I was going to keep it easy like this but I think I've had enough! I'll smash you down and take your soul!"

She roars and vanishes before Samson's eyes, appearing behind him and decking him straight in the back of his skull. Samson's vision goes fuzzy but he swings his body around and bashes the edge of his spear against her head with all of his might.

Something crashes like broken glass and the hard aura covering Luna breaks and allows the pole of the spear to smash against her temple.

Luna's head is smacked to the side, but her borrowed body's constitution takes the blow without so much as a bruise. Growling she grabs the spear and yanks it from his hands. Mirroring his attack from earlier, she grabs his shoulders and knees him straight in the groin.

Samson yelps pathetically but Luna decides to punish him some more. While he's still dazed she uses a few martial arts moves and strikes with cracking, gruesome blows against key parts on his body.

His kidney's, his jugulars and his ears. Each hit further disorients him and opens up his guard to even more devastating attacks.

Next, she attacks the ribs, one or two jabs with her advanced strength breaks them soundly and a final one-inch-punch directly to his sternum cracks the bone and sends the shards directly into his heart. Samson gasps as he's thrown off his feet and collapses unmoving to the hard-stone floor.

Luna breathes heavily a few times but quickly gathers her poise again. She glances at the dying form of Samson with a stony gaze.

"You were a strong opponent, but this fight was decided from the beginning. I'm a Titan boy, I've fought one on one with the storm giant, I've faced hundred of beings more powerful than yourself… you never had a chance."

To her surprise Samson manages a bloody chuckle.

"Heh… heh… Gods and Titans, always so focused on your rage… you have plenty of openings… Look at your shirt…"

Luna looks down at the trench coat and gasps as she she's pulsing green flowers slowly growing across the material.

"Oh… _shit._ "

The green flowers suddenly _explode_ as rapidly grow vines encircle her body and wrap it tight. She struggles against the vines, but the sheer amount of them is too much for her to handle quickly. Slowly they wrap around her legs and force her to kneel.

The more she struggles the more they tighten around her. She releases a sigh and glares at Samson as he slowly pushes himself back to stand on his feet again.

"How?! How are you still standing?! Where did these _things_ come from?!"

She gets a small, pained chuckle.

"Like I said… gods are arrogant, and you're full of openings. While you were wailing on me I was subtly throwing these little guys on ya'. A nice gift from Rhea herself, my jacket can grow these flowers and they each have a different use. But enough about that…"

He reaches into his jacket and pulls out a pair of golden, Lennon frame sunglasses.

Luna instantly senses godly energy not unlike Poseidon's trident or Zeus's thunderbolt radiating from it. Her eyes widen as she senses a distinct form of magic singing from the glasses. The power of the mind… the power of Prometheus.

"Like them? They're the first truly great thing I made. My helmet heals me like the golden fleece, my jacket protects me from curses and charms… but these? They see the truth. Not just in people, but in reality itself. And Luna, I want Mori to see the _truth_ of who she really is! These will waken her spirit and she'll kick you out for good!"

Luna barely has time for a snarky comeback as Samson forces the glasses onto her face. At first nothing happens, but quickly Luna feels stinging like a hot fire assaulting her mind.

The dormant spirit of Mori suddenly bursts into life, her powerful soul assaulting Luna and slowly forcing the invasive spirit from her body.

With a scream that can be heard for miles the dark spirit of Luna is forced from Mori's body and thrown into the sky.

Mori stop screaming and goes limp, the vines still holding her up. In an instant Samson is cutting her free from the vines and embracing his long lost wife, whispering sweet words as he holds her close.

"Oh gods-oh gods. I did it, you did it! Mori, my sweet, sweet Mori!"

She groans as her stomach churns like she's sick with the flu.

"Hmm… Samson? Did… did you do it? Are we okay?"

Her eyes are hazy, but she would recognize her lovable idiot anywhere. Even when she told him in his dreams it was useless to kill her… he somehow found a way. Those damn glasses… all it took was some hard reality and the parasite of a Titan was thrown from her body.

She grabs her husband and squeezes him tight. Both shedding tears of joy as the two long lost lovers finally reunite.

"Mori… oh gods Mori… I'm sorry-I'm so sorry!"

She laughs a few times and gently slaps his arm, giving him the glasses back before she goes insane. Something wrong fills the air, but she pushes the feeling away. This is their happy reunion. What could ruin this moment?

"S-Samson!" She says through forced laughs, "What-what in the world are you talking about?... Samson?... Samson stop it!"

Her husband won't stop crying and apologizing. At this point he seems more manic and sad than the happiness and elation he should be feeling.

She's here! They're back together again! A duo, a team! Everything should be fine now, so why is he so sad?!

"Mori… I-I… I can't stay…"

Her world crumbles around her, words barely forming in her mouth. Samson continues his apology.

"The Fates… they came to me, told me that if I wanted to keep you safe I have to give myself up. Mori, gods I'm so _sorry._ This hurts so much… but I have to let her do it. I have to let her absorb me… otherwise the Fates will punish you to punish me… Mori, you told me to move on, and I must say the same to you."

Fury fills her heart, not only for her husband's foolish decision, but for those _witches_ that love to torture him so much.

Mori reaches out to slap her husband out of this stupid plan, but something tugs back on her arm. She looks back and sees that the vines Samson cut have regrown and slowly bind her arms down.

She growls and grabs the vine with her free hand, burning it with her fire but the vines grow quicker then they burn and start wrestling her hands down. Mori _screams_ with fury and starts fighting the binding vines, calling over her shoulder as Samson faces a shimmering mist barely forming a vague humanoid shape.

"SAMSON! SAMSON YOU SON OF A BITCH! YOU'RE NOT DOING THIS TO ME DAMMIT! WE CAN FIGHT THEM! IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE THIS WAY! LISTEN TO ME ASSHOLE DON'T DO THIS!"

She rages for nearly a minute straight before he adrenaline leaves her system and she collapses numbly to the concrete. Hot tears fall from her eyes and stains the ground. She cranes her body painfully around and looks on in horror as the misty Titan slowly encloses around _her_ Samson.

He cries in pain as his body is torn into golden dust just like a monster when it dies. It's over in a few seconds, but his screams of pain continue to echo in her head.

The misty energy glows golden, slowly warping as it forms a much more solid form from before.

After nearly half a minute of struggling, a true and final form finally appears… and Mori's desperate wish for hope is crushed like glass beneath a foot.

Samson is gone. In his place is the familiar form of Abigail, or rather Selene as she learned from her foggy memories, and the girl-no, the _woman_ is resplendent.

Mori is reminded of Artemis, only more refined and oddly calming. Artemis has an aura of intensity, Selene has an aura of peace.

A silver crescent moon tiara shines in contrast to her raven hair. Her silver eyes glow with ancient power, a deep, resounding wisdom alongside sadness sparkling in the depths of those mysterious orbs.

Her chiton is classic, like most of the gods, but it's a pitch black rather than the bright colors the Olympians are fond of.

Selene glances at her hands, fresh tears leaking from her eyes and dripping into the cups of her palms. He really did it… the fool threw it all away to keep his lover safe.

Heh… what a truly good man… she'll have to fix that.

Luna hoped that if she was the one to consume Samson and Selene she'd be the one in control, but her spirit was weak. Very, _very,_ weak. Selene was always the original, and her connection to history was the strongest. The two spirits of the Titans have reconnected, and the spirit of Samson was the glue. Luna was wholly consumed by Selene instead, the recombination of the Titans created a single being without a Roman-Greek split.

Mene Selene walks the earth once more, a river of blood beneath her feet and the sacrifice of an honest man is what it took.

The Fates were cruel to poor Samson. They chose to have a Titan reborn from his death, and their insidious plan has been completed. But Selene is crafty. 'Fate' and 'destiny' can have many meanings, and she believes she's found a way around their machinations.

She glances at the weeping form of Mori, her lover, and snaps her fingers. The vines holding the Daughter of Hecate turn to ash and blow away in the wind. Selene nearly glides across the ground on gentle feet and stands over her friend.

Mori glances up at Selene's resplendent face and pleads desperately with her eyes, no words forming as she continues weeping.

"Hush now, child, all shall be as it must."

"That's just it," Mori manages to hiccup out, "What it 'must be' is awful! I waited for years to get my husband back! I fought my battles! I learned my lessons! Why? WHY?! Why couldn't they let us be happy?!"

Selene places a gentle hand on her shoulder and cups her chin with the other, gently turning her head so she's looking into her eyes.

"And your perseverance shall be rewarded. Come, we must be off. The Olympians await us, and I shall not allow them to punish you two unfairly."

Mori's eyebrows scrunch in confusion, "You… _two?_ "

Selene's eyes sparkle with a mischievous glint.

* * *

The Grand Council of Olympus wait in their perfect and immaculate thrones. The Olympians had a watchful eye on the battle up in Alaska… or at least some did.

If they're being honest, only Zeus really cared enough to extend his power beyond their borders to watch the battle take place and how the situation with the witch was handled.

The old King of the Gods was quite surprised to learn that Luna was actually the one pulling the strings behind the whole situation, and that the bastard boy who stole power from his favorite daughter was absorbed and used to resurrect Zeus's old lover, Selene, to her true form.

And now he can sense the Titan heading towards Olympus with the daughter of that witch in tow.

Even more to Zeus's surprise is that the Fates are here for reasons of their own as well. The old hags refused to answer his inquiries, leaving him to guess they have some kind of plan ready. Whether it's nasty or happy is honestly a fifty-fifty chance.

Okay… so maybe seventy-thirty, but still, when they're around important things are usually bound to happen.

For once the council surrounding him is quiet, and for the life of him Zeus can't figure out why. Usually the bastards bicker constantly until the ones they summon arrive.

Dramatic flare is the life of Olympus. What better drama than watching puny mortals squirm as the gaze of twelve to eighteen Olympians gaze down on them?… Depending on which ones are present.

Ever since that boy 'Perseus' came along they had to build more thrones for other gods. Even though many minor gods have their thrones here, most are busy and let the 'primary' Olympians handle everything.

It's honestly kind of confusing, and Zeus is admittedly lazy and just can't be bothered to deal with all this shit.

His bitch of a wife-he means his _lovely_ and _charming_ wife Hera clears her throat and gets her husband's attention. Zeus lazily turns to her and she subtly points to the ground.

Zeus looks down and mutters under his breath as Selene and the witch stand before the council already.

"Shit… Ahem… WELCOME TO THE COUNCIL. I HAVE SUMMONED YOU HERE TO ANSWER FOR YOUR CRIMES!"

Selene, Mori, and basically the entire council winces as Zeus uses his 'outside god voice' indoors and nearly blows everyone's ears out.

"Gah! Dangit Zeus can you tune it down! We're all right here!"

Zeus glares at Selene but she just rolls her eyes and looks out at the council seats.

"Huh, you've expanded." Her eyes trail to Apollo's throne only… Apollo is now an eight-year-old girl with warm fire in her eyes?

Hestia waves cheerfully from her borrowed throne, "Just borrowing this for a bit. Apollo is… indisposed and needs someone to manage the sun."

Selene just shrugs and turns back to Zeus.

"Sup?"

The council is silent. Artemis waves from her seat, "Hey. How's it going?"

"Eh. Was dead. Now I'm not. Anyways just want to ask you guys to forgive Mori and her husband."

Zeus's nostrils flare and his voice booms like thunder.

"YOU DARE DEMAND FROM THE COUNCIL?!"

Selene winces from the volume and covers her ears, "Jesus dude, dial it down! I'm asking like a nice person and all. Frickin saved your ass from Typhon and this is what I get?"

"Didn't you get your ass kicked by him and run away?"

Selene glares at Ares, "At least I fought it! All you dicks ran away the first time you _saw_ him!"

Ares pouts and sits back in his seat. The rest of the council squirms from the memory and avoids eye contact with Selene. Zeus, however, does remember the whole incident, seeing as how he was one of a literal handful of gods that originally tried to defend their home.

"VERY-" Hera slaps his arm, "Ahem… Very well, we shall consider your request for old time's sake! Though… what about the boy you mention? You consumed his soul did you not?"

Selene nods, Athena looks ever so slightly more grim in her seat, plots and plans for vindictive revenge already forming in her mind.

"I can bring him back. His essence revived me, it's not what keeps me together."

"OH!" Hermes yells excitedly from his throne, "Is it like the movie where the thing explodes from the guy's body?!"

Everyone looks at Hermes like he grew a second head except for Ares, the War God is actually pretty stoked to see some blood!

"No… That's kind of nasty. Man, you're a weirdo."

Hermes looks hurt. Selene doesn't give a shit. She extends her hand and holds out a jewel encased in a circle of metal.

Samson's amulet.

Athena sits straighter in her Throne and Mori's eyes widen in disbelief.

"No way… did you do what I think you did?!"

Selene half smiles, "Wasn't my plan fully. Samson thought he was going to be gone forever, but he hoped that maybe just a little bit of himself would get trapped within the amulet. Like a ghost or something. A faint tracing of his personality to live within the amulet and acts as a memory for his wife to hold on to... But I helped him out a bit. I took what I needed to reform and put the rest back in the amulet. Give it a month and he'll be back, good as new if just a bit weary.

Zeus! The Council of Olympus! I asked you to spare the boy and his bride from a grim fate and I shall continue so. Fates! Your plot has been fulfilled. Samson Akira died to recreate me, is he freed from a dastardly destiny? Are you happy with this outcome?!"

The Fates stand silent, unnaturally so. Not a movement, not even a subtle sound.

"The strands of destiny have met their goals."

"We are happy."

"It is done, we shall accept this."

"The boy shall continue forth, destiny is not yet complete."

"More await things await us-"

"Slinking in the darkness, he shall carry a torch."

"A grand fate, a resplendent one. He was created from Wisdom's energy to be a god."

"And a god he is… in all but domain."

"King of the Sky, chose one for the boy. Something Minor, he doesn't need much."

The room is silent and focused, even Dionysus is paying close attention. The Olympians all figured as much that the boy's immortality went further beyond the standard one. They all sensed the soul within him, it was much greater than anything a Apple of Immortality could grant.

Zeus is standing in front of his throne in all his godly glory. Thunderbolt in hand Zeus looks down at the amulet containing the reforming new god.

He turns to Athena, "Daughter, your son has shown considerable skill and has accomplished many tasks that can be considered impossible. His bride has worked against us, and the true perpetrator of this plot has been consumed and turned into an old ally. What are your thoughts?"

"…He has earned the right to be called a god. If the Fates call for him to be minor, then I believe a patron to mystic craftsman shall suffice. It's small but is worth something to many in the world below. As for the girl, I believe we should take Perseus's advice and show mercy. Perhaps we can gain another ally instead of a future enemy once again?"

Aphrodite looks between Hephaestus and Athena, "Isn't that Hephy's thing? He's the _Olympian_ god of craftsman after all!"

Artemis rolls her eyes, "He's the god of technology, not magic. Athena said _mystical_ craftsman, something close but very different from Hephaestus's domain."

The smithing god grunts in his throne, "Don't care much muh' self. Magic can stay with Hecate and her ilk, I work with metal and science. Let him be a god of those fools. All it means is that I can smash him up good for robbing my manual from me!"

Athena sighs, "Are you still concerned about that? It was over forty years ago now."

"You've held grudges for much longer! And yes, I still give a damn! No on steals from without getting their due!"

The Wisdom Goddess just rolls her eyes. Samson can handle Hephaestus fine by himself… _maybe_ she'll help him with plots. He is her favorite son after all.

"Then it is decided. All vote now! Shall the boy become a patron to Mystical Craftsman?!"

The entire council raises their hands. Honestly, they don't care that much, they all have better things to do. This whole situation is something only Zeus and Athena really care about, the rest would rather be in their temples or with their followers.

If it gets Big Beard to let them leave at this point they'll do anything!

"As my right as the most _powerful_ King of the Gods, I hereby name the boy a god and grant him a domain! Daughter, handle your son and his bride from here! I shall have words with my former companion."

The rest of the council flashes away. Athena steps from her throne an shrinks down to human size. She approaches Selene and gently takes the amulet, whispering faintly to the Titaness.

" _Thank you."_

Selene smiles subtly. She's spent years within Samson's soul and has an intimate connection to him as a result. She'll miss being connected with him, and now that she's been returned to her own body they'll never be as close as they were again.

But he's his own person, even if he's her reincarnation. Samson deserves to live his own life free from her shadow.

That doesn't mean they can't be friends. If anything, it gives her a reason to hang around. He'll need someone to show him the ropes, after all.

Plus… he's got a nice house, and she's technically homeless now!

Athena turns to Mori, her eyes shining with just a _faint_ amount of happiness to them.

"Shall we be off, then? Shall this drama come to an end?"

Mori just smiles happily with a few tears in her eyes, "Yeah, yeah I think I've accepted it now. The story's done, but there'll always be something else. More things to do."

Athena nods, "Wise girl. Very wise indeed. Let us take our leave, I suspect you have many words for my son once he reforms?"

Mori's eyes shine dangerously, "Oh you _bet_ I do! The damn fool let me think he was gone forever because of some chivalrous stunt! First thing I'm going to do is hug him. The next is kiss him. And _then_ I'm going to beat him unconscious!"

"I suppose I'd do something similarly myself," Athena finds it fair, "Let's give my father his privacy. We have much to do, much indeed."

Athena flashes away, taking Mori and her son with her.

An uneasy feeling fills the air around Olympus. A new god has been named, an old one has returned, and the Sun God Apollo is still absent from his throne.

They all can feel it, things are stirring in the world even now. Dark things, ancient things, the story is not yet over.

But they'll do as they always have; they'll continue to move on.

All things come to an end in time, all tales have a final conclusion. Yet, for now, all they can do is wait. More stories and heroes will arise soon enough, the end of one adventure usually marks the beginning of another.

The song of this tale has ended. But there will always be another.

The fates can see it now. Two Sons of War gods coming together. A beast from below, a madman, a madwoman, and lots of bloody carnage.

They smile deep, toothy grins to their selves.

This is going to be fun!

* * *

 **A/N: Alright, so the story's done! I still have mixed emotions about this chapter. Even with 14k words it's hard to write proper endings for everyone, but that's why sequels exist don't they? Don't worry guys, I will be writing a follow up to this story with my friend TheTruehero.**

 **I think next story will be much better, I'll actually set time aside to properly organize the story and all the major events. Hopefully I'll manage the characters better too! Shrink the cast down and give them all their own personal moments to expand them and make them more real.**

 **This story has been hella long and I know for a fact I could've done better, but I'm done now. The only thing left is to move forward. And next story I'll work very hard to improve upon my writing in hopefully every way.**

 **I just want to say thank you to everyone who chose to read this story. It's been a bumpy ride but I hope every chapter was interesting in some way to everyone.**

 **For all the support and love; Thank you! Thank you so very goddam much! I promise to be better for everyone in the next story!**

 **I'll leave everyone with a bit of a cliffhanger here. Something to tease the next story. Hope you guys like Samuel Strife!**

* * *

 _The Near future_

Samson is a god, and he still can't wrap his mind around that!

After hugging, making out with Mori, and getting his ass kicked by her while his mom watched, they dropped a _huge_ bombshell on him.

How did he react?

Cried for a bit, then asked what happens next.

Athena shrugged and told him to figure it out before leaving Samson stupefied in his home.

Months have passed, and he still doesn't know what to do. He feels the same as he always did, so maybe it's like a puberty thing?

Either way, him and Mori have been busy with their own lives in the meantime.

Her memory is still very foggy from Luna's possession and the river Acheron. It took her months to pull herself from her depression when she found out about what happened to their old friend Max.

She blamed herself, but slowly Samson managed to convince her it was because of Luna, and that she shouldn't blame herself for ordering his death.

They did find out him and Eris actually had a child, but that he died alongside their father when their car 'crashed', leaving the old mansion Max used to live in to be foreclosed and rot away.

Deciding to say their goodbyes to their past with their old friend Max, Samson and Mori traveled to his old home.

Only… in place of the broken and run down mansion Samson last saw the place as, it looks completely brand new!

"Guess… guess someone's bought it?"

Mori scans her eyes across the building, "No one's inside, can't sense any life. We could break in? Just see the inside one last time?"

Samson nods and Mori walks up to the door. She snaps her fingers and it opens right up.

They quickly shuffle inside and stand in the main hallway, looking out at the well decorated walls with a deep sense of nostalgia.

Time passes rather quickly as the walk through the house. Deciding they've had enough the return to the hallway one last time to say goodbye for good. Suddenly someone kicks the door open behind them and screams at them to surrender.

"Put your fucking hands up or I swear to god I'll put a bullet in your fucking heads!"

Okay, so someone is _really_ not too happy right now.

They spin around and come face to face with… a male Aphrodite? No, those red eyes belong to Eris. Ah geez, they're going to get robbed by one of Eris's brats!

The man holding a gun to them gasps as he sees Mori's bright blonde hair and emerald eyes.

"Aunt Mori?!"

She gasps as part of her memories return. This boy... he's Max's boy! Max's child is still alive!

...And he's holding them at gun point.

Well, what a lovely reunion.


End file.
